Altair Engineering

About Altair

Altair is the technology partner for tackling projects with state-of-the-art simulation technology, high performance design and data science for the AEC industry. For forty years, Altair explored what it described as the science of possibility with its customers, leveraging the convergence of rocket science and data science, propelled by high-performance computing.

The company's comprehensive, open-architecture simulation, artificial intelligence (AI), high-performance computing (HPC), and data analytics solutions empower organizations to build better, more efficient, more sustainable products and processes.

Now Part of Siemens

Altair Engineering was acquired by Siemens in a transaction valued at approximately $10 billion, completed in March 2025. Altair technology has been integrated into Siemens Xcelerator, the company's open digital business platform, creating what Siemens describes as the most complete AI-powered design, engineering and simulation portfolio.

For existing and prospective users, this means the Altair product line continues under Siemens ownership, with support services migrated to the Siemens Support Center.

Product Portfolio

Altair HyperWorks

The mechanical and electromagnetic simulation platform. Following the acquisition, HyperWorks software has been integrated into the Simcenter simulation and test solution portfolio.

Altair HPCWorks

High-performance computing and cloud products, enabling large-scale computation for simulation workloads that exceed the capacity of individual workstations.

Altair RapidMiner

Data analytics, AI, and machine learning solutions, now part of the Rapidminer portfolio within Siemens.

Altair One

A cloud gateway providing access to tools, data, and computing resources.

Altair Units

An all-in, always-on licensing system giving customers access to the full suite of software tools on demand rather than through per-seat licensing of individual products.

Relevance to Architecture, Engineering and Construction

Altair's simulation and computation tools apply directly to several areas of built-environment engineering:

• Structural analysis and optimisation - finite element analysis for building and infrastructure structures
• Topology optimisation - deriving efficient structural forms driven by load paths rather than convention, which can reduce material use significantly
• Computational fluid dynamics - wind loading on tall buildings, pedestrian wind comfort, natural ventilation and thermal performance
• High-performance computing - running analyses at a scale and speed that desktop tools cannot support
• Data science and AI - applying machine learning to engineering and operational datasets

Material efficiency achieved through simulation-led design carries directly into embodied carbon, which makes these tools increasingly relevant to sustainability targets as well as cost.

Open Architecture

A defining characteristic of the Altair portfolio has been its open-architecture approach - designed to interoperate with third-party solvers, formats and toolchains rather than lock users into a single closed environment. For engineering teams running mixed software estates, that interoperability is often the deciding factor in adoption.

Partner Ecosystem

The Altair Partner Alliance, now referred to as the Advanced Partner Alliance, gives customers access to a broader catalogue of third-party engineering applications through the same licensing arrangement, extending the range of available tools without separate procurement for each one.

Who Uses Altair

Altair technology is used by engineering organisations across automotive, aerospace, energy, electronics, heavy industry and the built environment. Within AEC, the primary users are structural engineers, facade engineers, environmental and building physics consultants, and research teams working on computational design methods.