Celebrating the hardware innovators turning prototype dreams into production realities.
Physical AI is here. From autonomous robots navigating factory floors to smart cameras detecting anomalies in real time, 2025 has shown what's possible when powerful silicon meets intelligent software.
But here’s what we’ve learned: the bottleneck isn’t the hardware anymore.
NVIDIA Jetson modules deliver jaw-dropping ML performance. NXP i.MX processors bring industrial-grade reliability. Synaptics silicon is purpose-built for vision. Renesas delivers automotive-grade intelligence.
The silicon is ready. The challenge is everything that comes after: taking a working prototype and turning it into a production-ready system—without spending 12–18 months fighting toolchains, BSPs, provisioning, and update infrastructure.
That’s why this holiday season, we’re highlighting the SoM providers and hardware platforms setting the pace for what’s possible at the edge.
Products we're excited about:
As an NVIDIA Platinum partner, Connect Tech was the first company to ever offer NVIDIA Jetson support (way before it was even called Jetson). If you’re building autonomous robotics or high-performance edge AI and need a custom carrier, look no further—CTI consistently delivers rugged, well-documented, production-ready Jetson platforms at scale.
Built for: Autonomous robotics, computer vision, real-time edge inference.
Product we're excited about:
Advantech combines decades of industrial computing experience with modern edge-AI ambition. The ICAM-540 delivers high performance through Jetson Orin NX in a ruggedized, production-ready enclosure. The ICAM-300 brings a compact AI camera option powered by Qualcomm’s 6490—an extremely competitive processor offering multi-core CPU performance, GPU acceleration, and an AI engine (NPU + DSP) delivering up to 12 dense TOPS. Both platforms are built for real-world conditions, making industrial-grade performance deployable at scale.
Built for: Smart manufacturing, industrial automation, automated inspection, AGVs.
Products we're excited about:
TechNexion is best known for their industry-leading NXP-based SoMs—including the AXON series—but they’ve stepped boldly into the AI camera arena with their GMSL2 product line. These cameras bring the same durability, scale, and manufacturing consistency that have defined TechNexion’s SoM leadership for decades.
Rumor has it they have more competitive vision offerings on the way, so keep an eye out.
Built for: Smart cameras, embedded vision systems, IoT gateways, robotics.
As if this list weren’t camera-heavy already (is there a trend underway in edge AI? maybe…), SolidRun recently launched a ruggedized platform perfect for building custom vision solutions in harsh environments.
Products we're excited about:
SolidRun delivers open-architecture hardware rooted in the Renesas RZ family, purpose-built for real-world deployments. The SolidSense AIoT platform is designed for remote and rugged use cases—featuring low-power standby modes, IP64-rated enclosures, and flexible sensor integration. It’s an ideal foundation for teams that prioritize reliability, long-term support, and deep customization.
Built for: Edge gateways, industrial control systems, automotive applications.
Last—but absolutely not least—is Grinn Global’s AstraSOM-1680. Synaptics, long known for low-power consumer applications, has emerged with an integrated NPU featuring Google Coral technology. With performance, efficiency, and broad developer interest converging, Synaptics is a silicon player to watch over the next few years.
Products we're excited about:
The AstraSOM-1680 is a compact, high-performance SoM designed for vision and AI workloads. It features a quad-core Cortex-A73, PowerVR Series9XE GPU, and a neural network accelerator—plus dual MIPI-CSI2, HDMI 2.1, USB 3.0, PCIe Gen2, and Gigabit Ethernet. This platform shines in smart cameras, inspection systems, embedded vision, and IoT gateways where compute density and image fidelity matter.
Built for: Smart cameras, AI inspection systems, embedded vision, IoT gateways.
Across all six SoM providers, one thing is clear: high-quality, AI-ready hardware is more accessible than ever before. So the question isn't "Can I get to market?"—it's "How fast?"
The silicon is ready. NVIDIA delivers ML powerhouses. NXP brings industrial reliability. Synaptics optimizes for vision. Renesas offers automotive-grade intelligence. Production-ready hardware is no longer the bottleneck. The bottleneck is software..
At Peridio, we're prioritizing support for each of the solutions above. Avocado OS provides Ubuntu-fast development with Yocto-grade production reliability across all these platforms. Peridio Core adds enterprise fleet management: secure provisioning, atomic OTA updates, and real-time visibility across thousands of devices.
The result? We can get you from lab to launch in weeks, not years. No custom BSP work. No Yocto gurus required. No 18-month integration tax.
Because this holiday season, production-grade hardware and production-ready software are finally meeting under the mistletoe—and the future of edge AI has never looked brighter.