Semicon India: Industry leaders bet on India as Asia's semicon powerhouse
New Delhi, July 28
Top industry leaders attending the Gujarat Semiconductor conference on Friday said India was set to be the next global powerhouse in the sector.
Ajit Manocha, President and CEO, SEMI, said at the Semiconductor India conference that throughout his career he had been asked whether India was ready to be part of the global semiconductor industry.
“Today I can say – the journey has begun. For the first time, geopolitics, domestic policies and private sector capacity are aligned in India’s favour to become a player in semiconductor production. The current semiconductor industry is likely to grow to $1 trillion industry.
India would be the next powerhouse in semiconductors in Asia,” he said.
Mark Papermaster, executive vice president and chief technical officer of industry giant AMD, said AMD would invest $400 million in India in the next five years. “AMD will enhance its R&D capabilities in India. We will build our largest design centre in Bengaluru.”
President, Semiconductor Products Group at Applied Materials, Prabhu Raja, speaking at Semicon India, said with a strong vision of PM Modi to develop manufacturing, India is poised to play an important role in the global semiconductor industry.
“We firmly believe this is India’s time to shine. No company or country can overcome challenges in the sector alone. It’s time for collaborative partnership in this sector. This new collaborative model can provide us with a catalyst in the sector.”
Raja said 25 global suppliers and five domestic suppliers were participating in the conference.
Young Liu, Chairman, Foxconn, said where there is a will there’s a way.
“I can feel the determination of the Indian government. I am very optimistic of the way India will be headed. PM Modi, once mentioned that IT stands for India and Taiwan. Taiwan is and will be India’s most trusted and reliable partner.”
Sanjay Mehrotra, CEO, Micron Technology, thanked PM Modi for his vision to make India a global hub for semiconductors.
“Micron is committed to building a semiconductor assembly and test facility in Gujarat. We estimate that our project in Gujarat will create nearly 5,000 direct jobs and additional 15,000 jobs in the community. We are hopeful that this investment will help catalyse other investments in the sector,” he said.
He said Digital India and Make in India are creating a truly transformative energy that will continue to drive positive progress.
