#011: Memfault Joins Nordic Semiconductor: What This Means for the Future of Connected Product Development

In today's Coredump Session, François and Chris share a major milestone in Memfault’s journey: Memfault is joining forces with Nordic Semiconductor. They’re joined by Kjetil Holstad from Nordic to explore Nordic’s history, how the acquisition came to be, and the exciting future they envision together. Along the way, they dive into the evolution of Bluetooth, the challenges of building complex embedded systems, and why developer experience is at the heart of it all.

Key Takeaways:

• Nordic Semiconductor’s journey from design services to global Bluetooth leadership hinged on bold bets and developer-centric decisions.
• The inclusion of Bluetooth Low Energy in the iPhone was a pivotal moment that accelerated Nordic’s growth.
• Building robust embedded systems today requires deep attention to software complexity, which has significantly increased over time.
• Decisions that prioritize developer experience—like open documentation and accessible SDKs—have been instrumental to Nordic’s success.
• Memfault’s partnership with Nordic was driven by a shared vision to make embedded observability easy, accessible, and deeply integrated.
• Memfault’s pre-integration with Nordic’s SDKs and their collaborative engineering work have helped reduce barriers for developers.
• The vision for a “chip-to-cloud” platform is about delivering seamless device management, monitoring, and OTA updates with a scalable, unified solution.
• Both Memfault and Nordic are committed to supporting non-Nordic hardware, focusing on building solutions that serve the broader embedded ecosystem.

Chapters:

00:00 Episode Teasers & Intro

02:59 The Origin Story of Nordic Semiconductor

06:11 The Evolution of Bluetooth Technology at Nordic

09:40 Bold Decisions and Learning from the Market

14:24 Nordic's Commitment to Developers and Software

17:32 The Shift Towards Software in IoT

20:04 Embracing Complexity: The Future of Nordic's SDKs

20:55 Understanding Trust Zone and Embedded Systems

21:46 The Importance of Strategic Partnerships

22:30 Building Relationships in the Tech Industry

25:09 The Value of Collaboration and Integration

27:38 Enhancing Developer Experience through Integration

32:24 Announcing the Partnership and Future Vision

33:07 Creating a Chip to Cloud Platform

36:05 Supporting Non-Nordic Devices and Ecosystem Expansion

39:10 Reactions to the Acquisition Announcement

44:58 Q&A

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