India Will Have 50 Semiconductor Startups By 2023-End: MoS Rajeev Chandrasekhar

Unlike the software products and services industry, semiconductor has not been a visible core strength of the country so far. However, for the last few years, the Indian government has been working on changing this.

Harping on the Make In India and Aatmanirbhar Bharat campaigns, the government has introduced a slew of incentive schemes such as Design-Linked Incentive (DLI), Production-Linked Incentive (PLI) and others to encourage semiconductor, EDA (Electronic Design automation), and EV startups.

To further sensitise the startups in the space and help them execute their semiconductor design ideas, Rajeev Chandrasekhar Minister of State for Skill Development and Entrepreneurship and Electronics and Information Technology of India flagged off the second edition of Semicon Future Design Roadshow in Bengaluru on February 24, 2023.

At the roadshow, the minister announced the launch of the ChipIN Centre at C-DAC Bengaluru, India which will act as a one-stop centre to provide semiconductor design tools, fabrication access, virtual prototyping Hw Lab, access to fabless chip designers of the country. Chandrasekhar also announced plans to launch India AI datasets programme, the world’s largest datasets programme, to catalyse the intelligent computing, AI computing, and device and system design ecosystem.

In December last year, the government approved the Semicon India programme, with an outlay of INR 76,000 Cr, to develop India’s semiconductor design and manufacturing ecosystem.

In an exclusive interaction with Inc42, Chandrasekhar said, “Semiconductor design and manufacturing is a very complex area, and this space is not for everyone, especially not for the faint of heart. However, we are seeing the contours of the semiconductor design and manufacturing startup ecosystem, as India today has about 21 startups, and we see this number growing to 50 by the end of 2023.”

Excerpts… 

Inc42: Despite having 20% of the world’s talent pool in semiconductor design and their ability to innovate, India is not among the top semiconductor design and manufacturing countries. What’s going to change from schemes like DLIs? 

Rajeev Chandrasekhar: I think the thought that we aren’t quite there is wrong. A large number of chips are being designed by Indian engineers in India. However, these are being designed for global majors, therefore very few IPs (Intellectual Property) and designs are owned by India.

As we prepare for the new reordering in the coming years, we want to create domestic capabilities to design IP and chips for the future. So, the intention today is to expand the talent pool as well as create a very vibrant, sustainable growing competitive startup ecosystem that can either develop chips on their own or co-develop chips with global reach.

Inc42: Applications under the DLI scheme are being invited since 2022, what has been the response from startups so far? 

Rajeev Chandrasekhar: Semiconductor design and manufacturing is a very complex area, and there is a lot of scepticism around the success rate in this field of work, especially when youngsters see their peers creating unicorns in the internet space. This space is not for everyone, especially not for the faint of hearts.

However, we are seeing the contours of the semiconductor design and manufacturing startup ecosystem, as India today has about 21 startups, and we see this number growing to 50 by the end of 2023.

Inc42: Is there any estimation about the total number of startups that will benefit from DLI over the next five years?

Rajeev Chandrasekhar: I don’t think there is any limit. Prime Minister Narendra Modi has already said that money is not a limiting factor. If tomorrow there are 100 startups, we will find the resources to support them, if there are 1,000 startups, we will support them all.

It is a combination of government capital, government support in terms of access to EDA tools, private capital, and introducing startups to government companies that need devices. So, there are multiple ways to catalyse the startup ecosystem, and we are committed to using all the available resources.

Inc42: As DLI is a central scheme, do you think states should join hands in building the ecosystem, such as building fabrication foundries?

Rajeev Chandrasekhar: Some state governments like Gujarat and Karnataka are investing to build foundries. We have seen this in Mysore, Karnataka, and Dholera in Gujarat.

So, Karnataka is doing a lot of proactive work to create design incentives. They are also applying to become a satellite centre of the Indian Semiconductor Research Centre.

There are many states that are in the race. However, at the end of the day, many may not succeed as semiconductor design and manufacturing is a very niche area.

Given that, there won’t be more than two or three fabrication foundries in the country, the first state to enter the domain will have an advantage over others. We are seeing Karnataka doing a lot of very interesting work. Gujarat and Maharashtra are also not behind in the race.

Inc42: The GSI established a heavy presence of lithium in J&K back in 1999. However, not much has been done in this regard since then. Could we expect a faster extraction timeframe this time?

Rajeev Chandrasekhar: This is not under my ministry but the Ministry of Mines. However, the discovery of lithium reserves will play a key role in providing much impetus to segments such as EVs, battery storage, and storage technology.

Some 15-20 years ago, lithium reserves were not as relevant. However, today such a discovery will help the nation lead the future of battery storage.

Inc42: India has been demanding a global crypto framework. Which are the key areas we are looking at to have a global consensus?

Rajeev Chandrasekhar: India wants more and more global alignment, at least among the democracies of the world. The first broad principle that we are espousing is strengthening the basic principles around the internet – safety on the internet, user harm, and cybercrimes on the web.

The second is around the issues related to blockchain and crypto. We are trying not to repeat the mistakes of the past and make way for private sector innovation to drive the future.

If countries around the world can come to a consensus of what the future should look like, including the goals, restricted areas, and principles around which our future blockchain or crypto should be built, it would prevent the abuse and misuse of these innovations.

So, India is taking a lead here. With 800 Mn Indians using the internet, we are leading in the global internet space today. So, I think there should be a harmonised approach towards crypto innovation.

Inc42: As India is currently chairing the G20 Summit, can we expect some concrete developments?

Rajeev Chandrasekhar: I hope so. Also, we hope to garner a tremendous amount of support and consensus around the future of the internet, the future of AI, and the future of blockchain.

Inc42: Digital Personal Data Protection Bill was released last year for public consultation. What’s been the feedback that you have incorporated since then?

Rajeev Chandrasekhar: You will see that soon in the Bill. What I can tell you is that we have done this extensively. We got a lot of feedback, and we have incorporated all the important areas in the Bill. Further, we have made the Bill simple, so that it can address the issue of individual data protection for all Indians.

The Bill also addresses the issue of innovation and clearly mentions the exceptional circumstances in which the government can access personal data.

The Bill will soon be introduced in Parliament.

Inc42: The draft Digital India Bill proposes to create a regulator for the internet. Given that in most cases regulators like RBI, SEBI, and TRAI have already been regulating their TAMs – whether online or offline – why do we need to have separate regulators?

Rajeev Chandrasekhar: We plan to have a public discussion on this in March. We will certainly look at how multiple regulators can regulate sectors that may or may not have a digital presence. We have to discuss it through. As of now, we plan to have a grievance redressal mechanism in place to provide support to aggrieved citizens from any kind of online abuse.

Inc42: The IT Rules (Amendment), 2022, which proposed the creation of a grievance appellate committee, was criticised by many, who also called the committee, a government-appointed censoring body – how do you see this? 

Rajeev Chandrasekhar: The grievance appellate committee has been suggested because many platforms are not doing their jobs. We will not allow any platform to abuse or exploit any citizen. If a platform does not address a grievance, he/she can appeal to the Grievance Affiliate committee. If the platform addresses it, then why will GAC intervene?