ESP32-S31 from Espressif: Wi-Fi 6, Advanced HMI, and Edge AI in One SoC

Enhanced ESP32-S31 connectivity

Connectivity without compromise

One of the strongest advantages of the ESP32-S31 is its very broad set of supported communication standards. The chip combines Wi-Fi 6 in the 2.4 GHz band, Bluetooth 5.4 with support for Bluetooth LE and Classic, as well as IEEE 802.15.4, which opens the door to implementing Thread and Zigbee. In addition, the manufacturer announces full support for Matter over Wi-Fi and Matter over Thread. This is complemented by an integrated 1000 Mb/s Ethernet MAC, allowing the ESP32-S31 to operate in both wireless and wired environments.

In practice, this means greater design flexibility. A single chip can become the foundation for smart home devices, control panels, communication gateways, or smart speakers that need to combine multiple protocols and standards in one product.

High performance for edge AI and multimedia applications

The ESP32-S31 is equipped with a dual-core, 32-bit RISC-V processor clocked at up to 320 MHz. The manufacturer also highlights the presence of an MMU and one core with a 128-bit data path and SIMD instructions, intended to accelerate parallel data processing. The chip offers 512 KB of SRAM and supports fast 8-bit DDR PSRAM at 250 MHz, with simultaneous access to Flash and PSRAM. In addition, it includes dedicated SPI interfaces, including configurations up to Octal SPI.

This is an important change from the perspective of modern edge applications. The ESP32-S31 is not aimed solely at simple sensors or communication nodes, but also at devices performing local image, audio, and AI/ML function processing. This makes it an attractive platform for more advanced consumer and industrial products.

Better memory and speed of ESP32-S31

Advanced HMI, image, and audio in one chip

This new SoC also stands out for its capabilities in the HMI interface area. The ESP32-S31 offers a DVP camera interface from 8 to 16 bits, support for 8–24-bit LCD displays, hardware color space conversion, and up to 14 touch channels. The manufacturer has also included hardware accelerators such as a JPEG codec, PPA for 2D graphics, and 2D-DMA, which are intended to offload the processor when handling graphics and images.

In the audio area, the ESP32-S31 benefits from Bluetooth 5.4 LE Audio, while also maintaining compatibility with devices using Bluetooth Classic. The chip also features two I2S controllers with a hardware audio synchronization mechanism over Bluetooth, which translates into lower latency and simpler design of audio devices.

All of this makes the ESP32-S31 a very strong candidate for applications such as smart panels, video intercoms, devices with displays and cameras, smart speakers, or controllers with advanced GUIs.

Security and rich peripherals for professional applications

Espressif also places strong emphasis on the security layer. The ESP32-S31 is expected to offer RAM-based PUF, secure boot, Flash and PSRAM encryption, a digital signature peripheral, cryptographic acceleration, and protection against side-channel and power glitch attacks. In addition, the chip is expected to support Trusted Execution Environment (TEE) and Access Permission Management (APM), enabling better application isolation and protection of critical system resources.

Also noteworthy is the set of additional interfaces: USB OTG high speed, TWAI (compatible with CAN 2.0), Gigabit Ethernet MAC, as well as typical peripherals such as I2C, I2S, SPI, UART, LED PWM, ADC, SDIO, timers, and DMA. According to announcements, the chip is to be supported by ESP-IDF, ESP-Matter, ESP-GMF, ESP-Hosted, and ESP-AT, and is also intended to fit scenarios involving AI agents and integration with language models.