Semiconductor IP Market to hit $18.64B by 2032, fueled by AI

The global semiconductor IP market, estimated at USD 9.30 billion in 2025, will expand to USD 18.64 billion by 2032, according to a new report. This growth, registering a 10.2% compound annual growth rate from 2026 to 2032, is fueled by demand for artificial intelligence, custom silicon, and the increasingly adopted RISC-V architecture. Rising semiconductor development costs are driving chipmakers toward pre-validated IP solutions that accelerate innovation and reduce engineering complexity across industries like automotive and data centers.

AI, Custom Silicon, and RISC-V Drive Semiconductor IP to $18.64B by 2032

The semiconductor intellectual property (IP) market is forecast to more than double in size, reaching USD 18.64 billion by 2032, a substantial increase from the USD 9.30 billion estimated valuation in 2025. This expansion, registering a 10.2% compound annual growth rate, is driven by companies increasingly turning to pre-validated IP solutions to address the rising costs and complexities of modern semiconductor development, accelerating innovation and improving productivity. Investments in custom silicon, particularly AI-enabled processors and chiplet-based designs, are significantly bolstering demand for semiconductor IP across diverse sectors including consumer electronics, automotive, telecommunications, industrial automation, and data centers.

The shift towards heterogeneous computing, advanced packaging techniques, and the open-source RISC-V instruction set architecture are creating new monetization opportunities for IP providers and fundamentally reshaping the competitive dynamics within the semiconductor industry. A report released by Research and Markets, titled “Semiconductor IP Market by Design IP, IP Core, IP Source, IP Consumer, Architecture, Vertical, and Region – Global Forecast to 2032,” details these trends.

Security IP is projected to be the fastest-growing segment within design IP through 2032, reflecting a critical need for robust hardware-level protection. Demand is surging for technologies like root-of-trust solutions, cryptographic engines, secure boot implementations, and increasingly, post-quantum cryptography blocks, driven by the escalating frequency of cyberattacks, the proliferation of internet-connected devices, the rise of software-defined vehicles, and the expansion of cloud-based AI infrastructure.

As security transitions from a feature to a core requirement in chip design, IP providers are positioned to capitalize on opportunities spanning automotive, industrial, consumer electronics, and data center applications. Hard IP cores are also expected to outpace soft IP in growth during the forecast period. Solutions like SerDes PHYs, PCIe PHYs, DDR PHYs, HBM PHYs, RF blocks, and analog circuits are in high demand as companies adopt advanced process nodes, high-bandwidth memory architectures, and AI accelerators.

The focus on power efficiency, performance optimization, and faster time-to-market is making hard IP increasingly vital for next-generation chip development. The RISC-V architecture is anticipated to experience the fastest growth of any architecture segment through 2032, offering customized processor development without the constraints of traditional licensing. Asia Pacific is forecast to remain the fastest-growing regional market, supported by investments in semiconductor self-sufficiency and expanding domestic chip design ecosystems.