FTDI

FTDI Ltd, officially Future Technology Devices International Ltd, is a Scottish semiconductor company founded in 1992 and headquartered in Glasgow. It designs and manufactures USB interface ICs and related components that enable USB connectivity for embedded systems. The company is best known for its USB-to-serial interface chips, widely used to connect microcontrollers and other devices to computers and networks.

Product families include the FT232 series (USB-to-UART converters), FT245/FT245R (FIFO interfaces), and FT2232H/FT4232H (multi-port USB-to-serial bridges with additional protocols). These devices support USB 2.0 and offer features such as internal baud-rate generation, configurable data formats, and, in many parts, a Multi-Protocol Synchronous Serial Engine (MPSSE) for SPI, I2C, and JTAG. The chips are embedded in development boards, USB adapters, and various consumer and industrial products.

Software and drivers: FTDI provides Windows, macOS, and Linux drivers, including the Virtual COM Port (VCP) drivers that present the USB device as a standard serial port, as well as the D2XX drivers for direct access from software. The company also offers development libraries, documentation, and example code for MPSSE-enabled interfaces and evaluation kits.

Impact and history: FTDI chips are widespread in electronics prototyping, education, and industrial equipment. The company has faced controversy in the 2010s over measures to curb counterfeit devices, which led to driver changes and public discussion; FTDI subsequently issued updates and guidance to address concerns. Despite such issues, FTDI remains a major supplier of USB-to-serial technology and continues to develop USB interface solutions.