Renesas Electronics reported a sharp rise in third-quarter profit on Thursday, helped by demand for automotive chips, data-centre growth, and a recovery in industrial and internet-of-things markets. Profit attributable under IFRS rose to JPY 372.2 billion from JPY 106.3 billion a year earlier. The figure includes a gain of about JPY 450.3 billion from the transfer of its Timing business, completed in July. On a non-GAAP basis, profit rose to JPY 125 billion from JPY 88.2 billion. Operating profit climbed 46% to JPY 150.5 billion. Revenue rose 30% to JPY 435.9 billion. Industrial, Infrastructure and IoT revenue jumped 46.4% to JPY 243.8 billion, while automotive revenue rose 19.3% to JPY 189.5 billion. For the fourth quarter, Renesas forecasts non-GAAP revenue of JPY 454 billion.

Renesas Electronics Corporation has launched the RL78/G21, a 16-bit microcontroller for smart appliance control, such as air conditioners, refrigerators, washing machines, and microwave ovens. The chip runs on 34 μA/MHz, nearly half the current of the RL78/G13. The RL78/G21 has electrostatic discharge tolerance of ±4 kV, stronger security against counterfeiting and cyber threats, and an on-chip oscillator and data flash that remove the need for external parts. It is pin and function compatible with the RL78/G13 and RL78/G23. Renesas also added RL78/G23 devices with 24 and 25 touch channels, up from 14 and 16. Both lines are available now. RL78/G21 pricing starts at $0.56 for the 128KB version and $0.77 for the 256KB version.

Renesas Electronics Corporation today launched the RX74M and RX74N, two 32-bit microcontrollers (MCUs) that run at up to 600MHz. They are the first in the RX Family built on a 22nm process with embedded MRAM, and deliver more than twice the performance of the 240MHz RX72M and RX72N. The RX74M targets industrial automation equipment such as AC drives, robots, and programmable logic controllers. The RX74N is aimed at smart meters, power conditioners, and heating, ventilation, and air conditioning systems. MRAM writes data without a prior erase step, which speeds updates and cuts downtime. The RX74M also combines EtherCAT, Ethernet TSN, and CAN FD on one chip. Both devices add hardware security features, including support for post-quantum cryptography. Versions at 300MHz use more than 20% less power. Both MCUs are available now.