Spending $10 billion to do some things that you’re already doing?
Siemens on Thursday announced it has completed its purchase of simulation software specialists Altair Engineering for that eye-popping sum. The German manufacturing technology behemoth already provides simulation via Simcenter and other products, but buying Michigan-based Altair will provide some immediate benefits.
Randal Kenworthy, Consumer & Industrial Products global practice leader at business and technology consulting company West Monroe, says taking over Altair fills in critical gaps in Siemens’ portfolio, enhances its credibility in certain areas, turbocharges its AI systems and makes it a better end-to-end provider of every software product a manufacturer could need.
“They've become the de facto market leader for Industry 4.0 platforms,” Kenworthy says. “I think this is the differentiating them by having a much deeper AI capability than Rockwell [Automation].”
He adds that the Altair deal puts Siemens and Schneider Electric in market-topping positions.
Siemens officials echoed that sentiment in their official announcement with President and CEO Roland Busch saying the deal “will create the world's most complete AI-powered design, engineering and simulation portfolio…. We will extend our leadership in industrial software. This enables all industries to benefit from the revolution driven by data and AI.”
Siemens has long billed itself as the only, or at least the primary, tech partner that most manufacturers need via its suite of design, control and monitoring software systems. Kenworthy says adding Altair gives it more credibility with simulation as some users prefer specialist providers instead of generalists.
But, he adds, the issue is less about what Siemens needed in simulation tools and more about ease of use and showcasing forward-looking technology. Siemens’ software has traditionally been designed by engineers for engineers, while “Altair has more of a user-friendly kind of approach. If [Siemens] leverages any of the Altair user design and software design methodology, I think that would support the user interface and user friendliness of the platform.”
More importantly, AI remains the biggest buzzword of the day, and Altair had invested heavily in a wide range of sophisticated AI tools for its simulation products. Siemens also has AI, but Kenworthy says Altair has bragging rights and a great reputation for the quality and usability of its AI tools.
Siemens officials say they’ll be integrating Altair’s technology into its systems for quite some time and will share information in the near future on upcoming changes.
They did not offer guidance on the future of Altair’s annual Enlighten Awards, an event that celebrated removing weight from products, primarily in the auto industry. The 2025 award is still seeking applicants.
In 2024, BMW and General Motors won Enlighten awards, as did several automotive and materials companies. DuPont took home the Sustainable Product award for a series of adhesives for electric vehicles that cure at lower temperatures, reducing energy consumed during manufacturing while speeding production lines.
