AI-SDK Custom Hardware Development#

Custom hardware development is included in Simplicity AI SDK Beta 1 and requires Simplicity SDK 2026.6.1. Dedicated skills guide agents through retargeting, board creation, peripheral configuration, and iterative firmware development on custom Silicon Labs PCBs.

General Description#

Custom hardware development is supported by specializied skills that guide the agent though the migration process, development stages, and verification of custom hardware. It is worth noting that migrating a project from a stock silabs radio board to custom hardware requires additional knowledge that cannot be generalized. You need to give information about your design to the agent for the migration to be successful. Or, You have the option to perform the migration and the subsequent configuration manually. The more information you can provide to the agent the better, but the most important are:

  • pin configuration

  • clock frequency and sources

  • communication interfaces These information are critical for the retartargeting process to be done correctly.

Tips & Best Practices#

  • Provide maximum hardware context — Pin maps, clock config, exact part number, and communication interfaces (UART, I2C, SPI) dramatically improve results.

  • Attach hardware descriptor files to the conversation when available; this significantly improves agent accuracy.

  • Tell the agent how your board connects to the PC — Probe type, serial number, and connection interface help with flashing and debugging.

  • Instruct the agent to ask when uncertain — Adding “ask me for clarification when unsure” to prompts prevents incorrect assumptions about hardware.

  • Iterate in small steps — Verify peripheral configuration changes one at a time before combining them.

  • For third-party chips/modules — Provide datasheets or module documentation as context; the agent can assist with wiring, driver implementation, and testing even without native tool support.

Available Tools & Skills for Custom Hardware#

AI-SDK provides various tools and skills to assist with custom hardware development, including board configuration, peripheral setup, and iterative firmware development.

  • slab-custom-hw-development — Iterative firmware development on custom PCBs (retargeting, peripherals, wireless config, power management)

  • slab-migrate-to-custom-hardware — Retarget an existing dev-kit project to custom hardware with minimal changes

  • slab-create-board-component — Author a reusable board BSP (.slcc) from a hardware descriptor/schematic

  • slab-hardware-retarget — Switches the target in a .slcp to another Silicon Labs board or to custom / no-board using SLC

  • slab-sdm-hardware — Device discovery, flashing, erasing, monitoring and capturing

Development Workflows#

You have a custom-designed PCB that uses a Silicon Labs MCU. In this case, you have two main options for AI-SDK-assisted development:

  1. Migrate from a dev-kit project (recommended).

    You already have a working application on a Silicon Labs board and want to retarget it.

    Typical Steps

    • Ask the agent to retarget the application. Clearly exaplain the pin, hardware and the configuration mapping. At first, it is advantageous to ask for minimal changes.

    • Review the changes that the AI made.

    • Build, flash via debugger MCP, and iterate

    • Verify that the application starts up, and there are no regressions

  2. Start fresh on custom hardware.

    No existing project — start from scratch targeting your chip.

    Typical Steps

    • Ask the agent to find a suitable example for your chip type any use-case

    • Generate the project, target the custom board at generation time

    • Explain the hardware configuration and constraints.

    • Develop iteratively — implement business logic, configure peripherals, verify via debugger. Have clear acceptance criteria formed for the verification steps

Usage of Third-Party Chips and Modules#

AI-SDK tools do not natively support third-party modules. Results depend on the chip/module, the LLM, and available documentation. With sufficient context (datasheets, pin descriptions), the agent can assist with wiring, driver implementation, and integration testing.

Related Topics#