New Russian chip based on RISC-V architecture: Baikal Electronics to release one million Baikal-U microcontrollers in 2026

The Russian company Baikal Electronics plans to supply 1 million Baikal-U (BE-U1000) microcontrollers to the market in 2026, which should replace the Western STM32 chips from STMicroelectronics and Microchip that are unavailable due to sanctions. This was announced by the head of the company, Andrey Evdokimov, in an interview with CNews. The retail price of one controller will be about 950 rubles excluding VAT.

Baikal-U is a three-core 32-bit general-purpose microcontroller built on domestic CloudBEAR BR-350 (200 MHz) and BM-310 (100 MHz) cores. It supports 48 GPIO lines, two DMA controllers, three eight-channel ADCs with differential inputs and temperature measurement function, built-in MicroPython and 192 KB of SRAM memory. The RISC-V architecture makes the device independent of Arm licenses and Western restrictions. In terms of technical parameters, Baikal-U is comparable to STM32F4 and STM32F7.

The chip has already been entered into the register of the Ministry of Industry and Trade, which allows it to be used in import substitution projects. The main customers are industrial automation enterprises, telecom operators, developers of "smart" metering systems in housing and communal services, as well as manufacturers of security sensors, the Internet of Things and unmanned systems. The company does not disclose where exactly production has been established. Until 2022, Baikal processors were manufactured at the facilities of the Taiwanese TSMC, which, after the introduction of sanctions, ceased cooperation with Russia.

The microcontroller market in the country is experiencing an acute shortage of medium and high-end components after the departure of European and American vendors. According to Anna Vasilyeva, project manager at Strategy Partners, the volume of 1 million chips corresponds to the real needs of the market.

The need for such chips is enormous today, especially in the housing and communal services sectors (water and heat metering systems), industrial automation, transport and various sensors for the Internet of Things.

Anna Vasilyeva, project manager at Strategy Partners

The expert notes that the price of 950 rubles makes Baikal-U competitive and attractive for mass production of Russian electronics.

Earlier, the Research Institute of Electronic Technology and the Element group also announced the release of their own 32-bit processors to replace STM32, but their planned volumes are five times smaller. According to market participants, Baikal-U is better than Russian analogues in terms of price and performance, occupying a high-performance segment of the industrial market.

If Baikal's plans are implemented, Russia will for the first time receive a mass-produced domestic microcontroller of the STM32 level based on the open RISC-V architecture — a key element in the chain of technological sovereignty.