Uploaded December 2025 | Updated September 2026, 3 weeks ago
In this in-depth conversation, Rolf Segger, founder of SEGGER, discusses the often-overlooked role of embedded development tools and why long-term maintainability matters more than ever.
Segger reflects on founding SEGGER in 1992 with the embOS real-time operating system, the launch of the J‑Link in 2004, and how J-Link became a de-facto industry standard. The discussion covers the risks of toolchain lock-in, consolidation in the tools market, and why independent suppliers still matter.
Topics include open-source vs commercial toolchains, sustainability over 10–20-year product lifecycles, the impact of regulation such as the EU Cyber Resilience Act, and the geopolitical uncertainties facing development tool vendors. Segger also explains SEGGER’s virtual CPU approach, the evolution of J-Link and Flasher hardware, and plans to open the platform further through SDKs and extensibility.
The interview closes with a forward-looking discussion on sandboxed embedded applications, security boundaries, and why future embedded systems may look more like controlled ecosystems than fixed firmware.
Elektor Magazine: elektormagazine.com
Elektor Store: elektor.com
Partner Up with Elektor: elektormagazine.com/partner-up
#SEGGER #EmbeddedSystems #JLink #FirmwareDevelopment
In this in-depth conversation, Rolf Segger, founder of SEGGER, discusses the often-overlooked role of embedded development tools and why long-term maintainability matters more than ever.
Segger reflects on founding SEGGER in 1992 with the embOS real-time operating system, the launch of the J‑Link in 2004, and how J-Link became a de-facto industry standard. The discussion covers the risks of toolchain lock-in, consolidation in the tools market, and why independent suppliers still matter.
Topics include open-source vs commercial toolchains, sustainability over 10–20-year product lifecycles, the impact of regulation such as the EU Cyber Resilience Act, and the geopolitical uncertainties facing development tool vendors. Segger also explains SEGGER’s virtual CPU approach, the evolution of J-Link and Flasher hardware, and plans to open the platform further through SDKs and extensibility.
The interview closes with a forward-looking discussion on sandboxed embedded applications, security boundaries, and why future embedded systems may look more like controlled ecosystems than fixed firmware.
Elektor Magazine: elektormagazine.com
Elektor Store: elektor.com
Partner Up with Elektor: elektormagazine.com/partner-up
#SEGGER #EmbeddedSystems #JLink #FirmwareDevelopment
