Qt Group - the Finnish company behind the popular software development framework and other tools for design and software Quality&Assurance, has recently completed the acquisition of Swedish IAR Systems. In my environment, on some forums and even in my own team, I've seen some kind of confusion and misunderstanding about what it really means in the long term.
I've tried my best to make this article as approachable as possible to Qt and IAR Systems users as well as to Qt's stakeholders in case they want to better understand what this deal actually mean.
This article is written from the perspective of a person who has been personally involved in Qt development from 2016. I founded Somco Software - embedded and cross-platform app development company with a strong focus on Qt, C/C++ and particular interest in medical devices and FinTech solutions.
What is Qt Group?
Qt Group, previously known as The Qt Company is a Finnish company recognized mostly for its software development framework - Qt. The framework itself has a rich history dating back to the early 90s which in the world of software development seems like a millennium ago. However, Qt is not outdated. Quite the opposite. It is both mature and modern, which makes it a perfect fit for quality industries such as medical, automotive, robotics and so on.
Actually, I would consider its maturity and the structure (no need for many dependencies) compared to its competitors, as its main advantages. Especially for these regulated industries being even more restricted in the times of cybersecurity.
Historically, Qt was used mostly for desktop app development, but later it became (in my opinion) the most cross-platform framework supporting mobile (iOS, Android) and embedded platforms. Extensive range of embedded hardware and OS platforms.
It is a common misunderstanding that Qt is just a GUI (Graphical User Interface) framework, but in fact it has a lot of features to implement things like databases, advanced connectivity, sensors connections and way more.
Although, the main source of income for Qt Group is the sales of commercial Qt framework licenses (it has both open-source and commercial options), it also invested in its own products like Qt Design Studio. Qt Group recently acquired some other companies in corresponding sectors such as Froglogic GmbH or Axivion GmbH which extended its product portfolio to software Quality&Assurance solutions. These moves also dictated the rebranding from The Qt Company to Qt Group as they literally became a hub of various tools.
From my practical experience I can say that these testing tools and Qt framework really complement each other. Somco Software develops a lot of medical devices where Qt is used for coding and Squish and coco (former Froglogic products) for regulatory-compliant testing. I do not know the sales numbers for Q&A offering only, but my bet is that they're rather satisfying.
What is IAR Systems?
I.A.R. Systems Group is a Swedish company, now fully owned by Qt Group. They develop a set of tools that support development of tiny embedded devices. By that I mean usually microcontrollers. Microcontrollers (MCUs) are little chips with limited resources and no support for a full operating system such as Linux. MCUs either use Real-Time Operating Systems (RTOS) or do not use operating system at all.
To be more precise, let's give some examples of what devices could be built using IAR platform. It can be a micro-controller that controls radar sensors or airbag system in your car. Or a chip inside a medical device such as patient's vital parameters monitor or infusion pump.
What extra value does IAR platform bring? First of all there is a compiler that heavily optimizes the code to maximize firmware efficiency and binary size. In many desktop, mobile or MPU projects it doesn't matter if app has 50 or 60MB, but in the world of tiny chips, 8-16 kilobytes can make all the difference in the world. For example if you squeeze your app on a cheaper MCU and have a huge volume of devices, then you save a lot of money in the long term.
There are also tools that support debugging, static analysis and safety checks. Using IAR Embedded Workbench makes a lot of sense for those who need reliable solutions. Just like regulated industries.
Where Qt and IAR Systems overlap?
Let's start with an example that will explain both differences and overlaps of Qt and IAR platform. It's a popular architecture that has many variants and I will not make this article longer by going in the details.
Embedded device architecture example
For one of our customers, Somco Software develops a medical device. From outside it looks like a box. Medical staff can see only a touch display and maybe a couple of physical buttons. But inside there is a lot of things going on. Each button, each diode, each sensor, each mechanical part has to be somehow programmed so we can discover and control its state. It's a common pattern that these hardware components are connected to some micro-controller that controls them. In many projects there is more than one MCU.
In the case of our project that microcontroller's firmware was developed using IAR Embedded Workbench. Again, it really helps in the regulated sectors such as medical where you really don't want to hurt or kill someone.
In the past medical devices, just like cars, didn't have displays, but with time both vehicles and medical devices became more sophisticated. There was a need to better visualize something or to connect with the cloud, so that's why such features usually needed more powerful hardware platforms. Either MPU or mini-computer that has more capabilities.
And exactly in this project we have an MPU and Qt app running on it. Qt software is used to store data, manage updates, connect with the cloud and interact with the user over nice GUI. Qt software and C/C++ firmware on MCU communicate with each other over chosen protocol.
Such architecture helps to separate contexts that are for example safety critical and in many cases increases maintainability over time.
Qt and IAR Systems differences
Although Qt has an offering for some MCUs (called Qt for MCUs), there is often no reason to actually use this framework as Qt firmware will never be so compact as pure C/C++ one. Especially if there is no GUI to display with this MCU. You would have to get more expensive hardware and pay for Qt's commercial license.
IAR Systems usually target way more low-level devices. The ones Qt is not competent for running. And that extensive optimization (thanks to IAR C/C++ compiler) is not something available as part of Qt's standard offering.
Qt and IAR systems overlaps
So despite the differences, the example given above perfectly pictures the match between both technologies. They're already used together in many setups within one project.
In fact, it is also possible to combine Qt for MCU with IAR's tools and compilers. So then you can benefit from both Qt's powerful API and enhanced performance. Not to mention all safety checks.
Qt and IAR Systems do not replace each other, but complement each other. Qt Group's motivation is very clear. They aim to provide a comprehensive solution. From silicon to screen.
Why does this deal make sense?
From what I have read, Qt Group paid over 200 mln EUR while I.A.R. Systems Group will add them ~15 mln EUR EBITDA. It means EBITDA to price ratio equal 13.3(3). Qt Group took a huge loan to finance the deal that might seem expensive, but in fact it's not that much compared to what Microsoft invests in AI for purely hypothetical future earnings. IAR Systems Platform is a true asset with a value behind it.
Those who know me know that I am a fan of bold decisions. This decision was certainly so. Does it have the potential to pay off? I've already explained scenarios where Qt and IAR complement each other. There is a huge potential for cross-selling and it doesn't limit to Qt software framework, but also its Q&A tools.
To add a bit of a reality check to this analysis, these are interesting and uncertain times. The automotive industry, where both Qt and IAR have strong positions, is highly unpredictable.
Qt's challenges amid acquisition
Despite cross-selling potential, in my opinion, one of Qt’s biggest challenges will be marketing. As the founder of a Qt consulting company, I stay up to date with many parts of Qt’s offering, yet I repeatedly hear or observe that people are starting to lose track of what Qt actually does and what it doesn’t do. The number of myths around Qt (licensing, the “GUI-only framework” perception, etc.) is huge, and the situation where Qt Group suddenly seems to be doing everything certainly doesn’t help unify or simplify the message.
These opinions keep circulating and tend to fuel competition against Qt in areas such as desktop and even embedded. In the long run, this could translate into lower license sales.
Personally, I believe that information overload can have a serious impact on business. Marketing is simply easier and more effective when it focuses on one clear message. In the short term, Qt may have strong opportunities for cross-selling and up-selling, but in the long term, if this isn’t managed carefully, it may become harder to attract newcomers.
I sincerely hope Qt will be able to bring order to this informational chaos and communicate its value proposition more clearly.
What does it mean to Qt developers and IAR users?
As mentioned earlier, Qt started as typically desktop solution. The march towards embedded is visible for at least 15 years though. Over time, a lot of desktop solutions have migrated to the web to benefit from enhanced cooperation possibilities, cloud storage and no installation. Also, in the realms of desktop development, Qt started to notice a lot of new competitors like Flutter, JS solutions, Kivy, MAUI and many more.
Qt has a lot of pressure in the desktop sector where it used to be no. 1 player on the market, so they focused on embedded. However, embedded is also a wide term and embedded device can be in fact PC-grade MPUs or mini-computers with full Windows or Linux, so you can code software for this platform using these other competitive frameworks.
Despite the fact that many desktop projects, such as KDE, are built on Qt, I’m concerned that the framework may increasingly be pushed toward the embedded space. Unfortunately, embedded is a niche within a niche, and this shift is unlikely to improve Qt’s overall popularity.
My advice to Qt developers is therefore simple: if you want to keep working with Qt - and, like me, you enjoy the framework - you should start learning and exploring the broader embedded programming ecosystem. That’s where Qt will probably be used more and more frequently.
As for users of IAR Systems, I think you should expect further changes in licensing and pricing. The recent move to a subscription-based model was almost certainly influenced by the deal with Qt. When it comes to pricing, I suspect increases are likely. Similar to what happened with Froglogic’s Squish GUI Tester after the acquisition. This may result in smaller customers being priced out of the market.
Overall, this could make the ecosystem less accessible for smaller teams and independent developers.
Summary
Amid the competition and general trends in the software development, I believe that Qt made a good deal here and I keep my fingers crossed for its success. In the world of AI, you have to adapt and offer solutions that are on one hand comprehensive (so you keep the user with you throughout their whole journey) and sophisticated, so it is not a trivial thing to replicate.
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