National Harbor, Md. – September 16, 2026 -- Aitech has introduced the C165 Rugged 6U VME Single Board Computer, a pin-compatible successor to its C164 and C163 SBCs designed to let defense programs modernize fielded VME systems without full platform redesigns. The company unveiled the board at the Air & Space Forces Association Air, Space & Cyber Conference in National Harbor, Maryland, running Sept. 14-16 at booth MB400.
New board delivers 2x power efficiency and 2.5x graphics gains over prior Aitech VME platforms
The C165 is built on the 11th Gen Intel Core i7-1185GRE Tiger Lake UP3 processor paired with Intel Iris Xe graphics featuring 96 execution units. Aitech states the board achieves a 2x improvement in CPU performance-per-watt and more than 2.5x higher graphics performance compared with previous-generation VME solutions from the company.
Board supports up to 32GB memory and 4TB secure storage for data-intensive missions
The SBC supports up to 32GB of LPDDR4X-4267 memory with in-band ECC and up to 4TB of self-encrypting NVMe storage featuring Quick Erase and Secure Erase capabilities. These specifications target mission computing, ISR processing, video analytics and sensor-driven workloads that require higher throughput than legacy VME hardware can handle.
AiSecure framework adds TPM 2.0, Secure Boot and Intel Boot Guard for cyber-hardening
Aitech has integrated its AiSecure cybersecurity framework into the C165, incorporating TPM 2.0, Secure Boot, Intel Boot Guard, encrypted storage and secure erase functions. The additions respond to increasing cybersecurity mandates across defense procurement programs facing component obsolescence in legacy systems.
Pin-compatible design preserves existing VME infrastructure across air, land and naval platforms
Because the C165 is pin-compatible with the C164 and C163, program teams can upgrade compute and graphics capability within already-fielded VME architectures rather than migrating to new system designs. Aitech product manager Alex Trigoub said the board is intended to let customers extend deployed systems' operational life and address obsolescence while minimizing upgrade and operational costs.
Board ships with air-cooled and conduction-cooled variants plus mezzanine expansion support
The C165 supports PMC and XMC mezzanine sites for functional and I/O extensions and is offered in both air-cooled and conduction-cooled configurations for the rugged 6U VME form factor. The product is now available for mission development and platform modernization programs.