SEMICON India 2025: Industry seeks policy push to build product nation

Industry leaders say incentives, procurement, and talent ecosystem are key to driving India's semiconductor and product ambitions.

Government incentives, state-led procurement of semiconductor chips and products, and stronger venture capital funding can propel India towards becoming a product nation, industry leaders said at SEMICON India 2025 on Wednesday. They stressed that adequate policy support and ecosystem development are crucial to driving the country’s semiconductor ambitions.

 

Ajai Chowdhry, chairman of the National Quantum Mission of India and cofounder of HCL Infosystems, said India should build on its strengths. “The time has come for us to move towards being a product nation. At the moment, only 20–30 companies are making chips in India, but we need hundreds,” he said. He added that once the country makes its own products, the government should provide an initial push through incentives and procurement.

   

“Once products are designed, it’s essential that government business goes to startups making these products. This is how the US succeeded with its Darpa (Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency) model, where challenges were given to startups, they built the products, and the government became their first customer. These companies grew first through government contracts and then globally,” he said, adding that India needs a similar model to become a product nation.

 

Echoing this, Kartikeya Joshi, vice-president and head of product management at Uno Minda, an automotive components manufacturer, said: “The initial demand of the government should be directed to startups because every product company needs an anchor customer. If they first get an opportunity with the government and then move to sectors such as automotive or aerospace, that creates a progressive path for startups to succeed.”

 

Sundeep Gupta, managing director of Alphawave Semi India, which designs high-speed connectivity solutions, said: “In semiconductors, developing a product requires at least 15 years of experience. So there must be guarantees that if a company builds a quality product, it will be purchased.”

 

Investor confidence is also critical, said Nikul Shah, founder of IndieSemiC, which works with semiconductors and embedded systems. “China is changing technology every year and every month, while we are just starting — so we have to move fast. If the government can approve multiple projects for a single company, and if investors support firms to build chips within the ecosystem, this could be revolutionary in the next few years.”

 

Industry representatives also emphasised the need to attract world-class talent to strengthen local production.

 

Gupta said that India should bring back Indian-origin professionals. “We have a lot of Indian leadership in the US. We need such visionaries to think about products they can build here. For example, if someone wants to build an artificial intelligence chip — which will be used everywhere — they need the best graphics processing unit designers and processors. With the right schemes, we can attract such talent and build the next big company.”

 

Chowdhry added that talent will return only if the ecosystem exists. “If we create the ecosystem, people will come. If we don’t, they won’t. We need chip design, fabrication, packaging, and a local market. With a full ecosystem in place, India can have some of the world’s best products and chips being designed,” he said.

 

Agreeing, Joshi said: “In global companies, much of the leadership talent is Indian. The first step is to bring back world-class talent, and for that we need a clear road map and a strong ecosystem. In the automotive space especially, India has the biggest headroom for growth.”