Transmeta

Transmeta Corporation was an American semiconductor company founded in 1995 and based in Santa Clara, California. It developed x86-compatible processors that combined a hardware VLIW core with software-driven translation known as Code Morphing, intended to achieve x86 compatibility with low power consumption.

Code Morphing translates x86 instructions into native instructions for a VLIW engine, with a runtime optimizer that adapts to software behavior. The company also promoted LongRun, a dynamic power-management technology intended to reduce CPU energy use and extend battery life.

Transmeta's first generation of processors, under the Crusoe brand, targeted ultraportable laptops and embedded devices and gained attention for low thermal output and battery life. A second generation, Efficeon, offered higher performance while maintaining emphasis on power efficiency and used in similar applications.

Business strategy included licensing its intellectual property and technology to original equipment manufacturers and offering reference designs, rather than solely selling processors. This approach was intended to monetize the technology while remaining competitive in a market dominated by Intel and AMD in x86 performance.

Over time, Transmeta faced significant market and financial challenges, including stiff competition from established x86 makers and the high costs of sustaining CPU development. The company gradually reduced its R&D and shifted focus toward licensing and other opportunities, and eventually wound down active CPU development.

Transmeta's work contributed to broader research in dynamic binary translation and software-assisted CPU design, and its Code Morphing technology is cited in discussions of software-based CPU development and low-power architectures.