Ansys, Inc. is an American multinational company with its headquarters based in Canonsburg, Pennsylvania. It develops and markets CAE/multiphysics engineering simulation software for product design, testing and operation and offers its products and services to customers worldwide. On July 17, 2025, the company became a subsidiary of Synopsys.
History
Origins
Ansys was founded in 1970 as Swanson Analysis Systems, Inc. (SASI) by John Swanson. The idea for Ansys was first conceived by Swanson while working at the Westinghouse Astronuclear Laboratory in the 1960s. At the time, engineers performed finite element analysis (FEA) by hand.
Swanson developed the initial ANSYS software on punch cards and used a mainframe computer that was rented by the hour.
Growth
By 1991, SASI had 153 employees and $29 million in annual revenue, controlling 10 percent of the market for finite element analysis software. away from software licenses, and corresponding revenue declined. In November 2020, South China Morning Post reported that Ansys software had been used for Chinese military research in the development of hypersonic missile technology. In October 2022, Washington Post reviewed procurement documents and confirmed that Ansys technology had been acquired by seven Chinese entities present on either the export blacklist or with known links to Chinese missile technology. Ansys said that it and its subsidiaries have no records of the indicated sales or shipments and suggested that piracy may have been involved. The acquisition was completed on July 17, 2025.
List of acquisitions
{| class="wikitable sortable"
|-
! Year announced
! Company
! class="unsortable"| Business
! Value (USD)
!class="unsortable"|References
|-
|1999
|Centric Engineering Systems
|Fluid, structural, and thermal analysis
|Not disclosed
|
|-
|2001
|Cadoe
|Computer-aided design
|Not disclosed
|
|-
|2012
|Esterel Technologies
|Simulating interactions between software and hardware
|53 M
|
|-
|2013
|EVEN (Evolutionary Engineering)
|Cloud-based software for engineering composites
|Not disclosed
|
|-
|2014
|Reaction Design
|Chemistry and combustion simulation
|19.25 M
|
|-
|2014
|SpaceClaim
|3D modeling
|85 M
|
|-
|2015
|Gear Design Solutions (2015)
|Analytics software
|Not disclosed
|
|-
|2015
|Delcross Technologies
|Systems analysis
|Not disclosed
|
|-
|2015
|Newmerical Technologies International Inc.
|In-flight icing simulation
|Not disclosed
|
|-
|2016
|KPIT medini Technologies AG
|Automotive design
|Not disclosed
|
|-
|2017
|CLK Design Automation
|Transistor-level simulation for semiconductor IP and system-on-chip (SoC) designs
|Not disclosed
|
|-
|2017
|Computational Engineering International, Inc. (CEI)
|Advanced post-processing and visualization
|Not disclosed
|
|-
|2017
|3DSIM
|3D printing simulation
|Not disclosed
|
|-
|2018
|OPTIS
|Optical simulations
|Not disclosed
|
|-
|2019
|Helic
|Electromagnetic crosstalk simulation
|Not disclosed
|
|-
|2019
|Granta Design
|Material intelligence
|Not disclosed
|
|-
|2019
|DfR Solutions
|Reliability physics-based electronics design tool for accurate life predictions of electronic hardware
|Not disclosed
|
|-
|2019
|LSTC
|Advanced multiphysics simulation
|775 M
|
|-
|2019
|Dynardo
|PIDO technology
|Not disclosed
|
|-
|2020
|Nuhertz Technologies
|Electronic filter synthesis and simulation
|Not disclosed
|
|-
|2020
|Lumerical
|Photonic simulation
|Not disclosed
|
|-
|2020
|Analytical Graphics Inc.
|Aerospace and defense-focused engineering simulation software
|700 M
|
|-
|2021
|Phoenix Integration, Inc.
|Model-based engineering and model-based systems engineering
|Not disclosed
|
|-
|2021
|Zemax
|Design and analysis of both imaging and illumination systems
|411 M
|
|-
|2022
|Motor Design Limited (MDL)
|Electric machine designs
|Not disclosed
|
|-
|2022
|OnScale
|Web-based UI for access to Ansys' simulation technologies
|Not disclosed
|
|-
|2022
|C&R Technologies
|Orbital thermal analysis company
|Not disclosed
|
|-
|2023
|DYNAmore
|Simulation software, distribution and support, mainly for the automotive industry
|Not disclosed
|
|-
|2023
|Diakopto
|EDA solutions for accelerate integrated circuit (IC) development and resolution of critical issues caused by layout parasitics
|Not disclosed
|
|}
Engineering simulation software
Ansys develops and markets engineering simulation software for use across the product life cycle. Ansys Mechanical finite element analysis software uses computer models to simulate structures, electronics, or machine components to evaluate the strength, toughness, elasticity, temperature distribution, electromagnetism, fluid flow, and other attributes. which is one of the company's main products.
Ansys also develops software for data management and backup, academic research and teaching.
In 1980, the Apple II version was released, allowing Ansys to convert to a graphical user interface in version 4 later that year.
Version 8.0 was published in 2005 In 2009 version 12 was released with an overhauled second version of Workbench. Ansys also began increasingly consolidating features into the Workbench software. The following year, version 17 introduced a new user interface and performance improvement for computing fluid dynamics problems. In January 2017, Ansys released version 18. The Ansys Application Builder, which allows engineers to build, use, and sell custom engineering tools, was also introduced with version 18. In early 2020, the Ansys Academic Program surpassed one million student downloads.
In May 2020, Ansys joined Microsoft, Dell and Lendlease on the steering committee of the Digital Twin Consortium, which aims to advance the use of digital twin technology. The company collaborated with the US Army and L3Harris to advance the use of FACE technical standard. In April, 2020, Samsung Foundry certified Ansys' RaptorH EM simulation solution for developing 2.5D/3D-ICs and systems-on-chip using Samsung's signoff flow. In August, 2020, Ansys received TSMC certification for its SoIC 3D chip stacking technology. In October, 2020, the company signed the agreement to acquire Analytical Graphics Inc. for $700 million.
In 2021, Optimo Medical AG integrated its Optimeyes digital twin technology with Ansys Mechanical to create identical copies of cornea for surgical procedure testing purposes. Ansys and Siemens Energy collaborated to improve additive manufacturing (AM) processes. In May 2021, Ansys acquired Phoenix Integration, Inc. for an undisclosed amount. The same year, Ansys acquired Zemax for an undisclosed amount. In partnership with Cornell University, Ansys developed simulating courses.
In March 2022, the company announced collaboration with GlobalFoundries to address issues facing data centres. In April, 2022, Ansys announced signing a definitive agreement to acquire OnScale to expand its cloud portfolio.
In May 2022, Ansys acquired Motor Design Limited (MDL) for an undisclosed amount.