China’s ‘rising star’ in chip design software cuts up to half its workforce amid market headwinds

X-Epic had a workforce of about 400 working in offices in Nanjing, Beijing, Shanghai, Chengdu and Shenzhen, as of March 2023, according to PitchBook data. — SCMP

A leading Chinese chip design software start-up is slashing as much as half of its workforce, casting a shadow over Beijing’s efforts to achieve tech self-sufficiency, according to three people familiar with the matter.

X-Epic, established in 2020 with a mission to develop indigenous electronic design automation (EDA) tools to break the monopoly of US firms, started cutting jobs this week across different departments, including its core research and development unit, according to sources familiar with the situation who declined to be identified as they are not authorised to talk to media.