Democratizing Computer Hardware Design

Please join Prof. Alec Gallimore, Robert J. Vlasic Dean of Engineering; Prof. Michael Wellman, Richard H. Orenstein Division Chair of Computer Science and Engineering; Collegiate Lecturer Emerita Mary Lou Dorf; and the Computer Science and Engineering Division as we honor Prof. Valeria Bertacco for her appointment to a collegiate professorship.

Professor Bertacco will be installed as the Mary Lou Dorf Collegiate Professor of Computer Science and Engineering and will present a lecture.

Abstract:
The pace of innovation in computing systems, and thus the electronic industry, is being impacted by slowing trends in traditional silicon device scaling, and by skyrocketing costs of hardware design and manufacturing. The high level of engineering specialization and the high-cost barriers to enter the electronics market has shrunk the number of startups and companies that can participate in the design of novel computing systems. In this talk, I will argue that the key to reignite innovation in computing systems design is to enable participation by a broader engineering community. To attain this goal, we must revisit all layers of design and manufacturing to make tools and packaging solutions more approachable, such that it will become possible for small teams to realize big ideas. The talk will share perspectives from the ADA research center, which focuses on these initiatives.

Biography – Valeria Bertacco
Valeria Bertacco is Thurnau Professor of Computer Science and Engineering at the University of Michigan, and Adjunct Professor of Computer Engineering at the Addis Ababa Institute of Technology. Her research interests are in the area of computer design, with emphasis on specialized architecture solutions and design viability, in particular reliability, validation, and hardware-security assurance. Her research endeavors are supported by the Applications Driving Architectures (ADA) Research Center, which Valeria directs. The ADA Center, sponsored by a consortium of semiconductor companies, has the goal of reigniting computing systems design and innovation for the 2030-2040s decades, through specialized heterogeneity, new silicon devices that show benefit to applications, and new hardware design flows that can be adopted by a broad population of computer engineers.

Valeria joined the University of Michigan in 2003. She currently serves as the Vice Provost for Engaged Learning at the University of Michigan, supporting all co-curricular engagements and international partnerships for the institution, and facilitating the work of several central units, whose goals range from promoting environmental sustainability, to the promotion of the arts in research universities, and to increasing the participation of gender minorities in the academy.