India Wants Its Own Chips

Dinesh Dhamija, Founder - Ebookers - @dinesh_dhamija
 
Fed up with buying expensive semiconductors from Taiwan, Japan and the United States, the Indian government is luring international chipmakers with a $10 billion subsidy. The country’s first semiconductor plant will start construction in August, with US-based Micron Technology due to start production at the $2.75 billion facility by December 2024.
“This is the fastest for any country to set up a new industry,” said Ashwini Viashnaw, Indian minister of electronics and information technology. He is keen to bring this crucial technology in-house, as India builds up its smartphone and electric vehicle manufacturing base, which both rely heavily upon sophisticated chips.
 
The move is part of a larger agenda:
“The Government of India aspires to position India among the world’s top five scientific powers,” says the India Brand Equity Foundation (IBEF). “India is aggressively working towards establishing itself as a leader in in...