Nordic Semiconductor has introduced the nRF71 series, a family of ultra-low-power system-on-chips (SoCs) that combine Wi-Fi, Bluetooth Low Energy (LE), Thread, and edge AI capabilities in a single device. Designed for battery-powered connected products, the new platform delivers up to 20 times lower standby power consumption than the previous-generation nRF70 Series Wi-Fi products. The nRF71 architecture extends Nordic's low-power wireless technology to applications that require continuous connectivity and local data processing, including smart home devices, wearables and industrial IoT equipment. By integrating wireless communication, application processing, and AI inference on one chip, the platform reduces the need for external processors and can lower system complexity, power consumption, and component count. A key feature is the integrated Axon neural processing unit (NPU), which accelerates machine learning workloads directly on the SoC. According to Nordic, the NPU executes supported models 10 to 17 times faster than the 256-MHz Arm Cortex-M33 processor operating alone. Target applications include keyword spotting, anomaly detection, and image classification. Developers can also use Nordic's Neuton software to create ultra-small machine learning models from their own datasets for execution on the processor without requiring the NPU. The platform supports over-the-air model updates through Nordic's nRF Cloud service, allowing deployed devices to receive updated AI functionality. This combination of hardware acceleration, software tools, and remote model management is intended to make edge AI practical for devices with tight energy budgets. The nRF71 Series also integrates two independent radio subsystems with separate RF and processing blocks. One handles Wi-Fi, while the second uses Nordic's 2.4-GHz multiprotocol technology for Bluetooth LE and Thread. Both radios can receive simultaneously, allowing a device to maintain a Wi-Fi connection to the cloud while listening for local Bluetooth LE or Thread traffic. The first products are the nRF7120 and nRF7120E . The nRF7120 supports dual-band Wi-Fi 6, while the nRF7120E adds tri-band Wi-Fi 6E. Both integrate the Axon NPU, 4 MB of on-chip non-volatile memory, and 1 MB of user-accessible RAM. Potential applications include Matter-enabled smart locks, security panels, smart home hubs, Matter bridges, Thread border routers, wearables, and industrial sensors. The nRF71 Series is currently sampling to select customers. Nordic is also presenting the platform, including a Nordic-branded module, at electronica in Hall C6, booth 159. The post Nordic Launches nRF71 SoCs for Low-Power Wi-Fi and Edge AI appeared first on Embedded .