Overview

• The minister said India is pushing to become a product nation, with chipsets built on domestic intellectual property as a core goal.
• He emphasized the Design Linked Incentive scheme for chip design startups, which reimburses up to 50% of eligible costs.
• He highlighted IIT‑Madras–incubated Mindgrove for secure IoT SoCs, noting a media report he cited that says the startup has placed its first mass‑manufacturing order with a foundry partner.
• Mindgrove secured Rs 15 crore under DLI to develop a Vision SoC after designing its first IoT chip in 2024 for devices such as smartwatches and home appliances.
• The government recently cleared four semiconductor projects worth Rs 4,600 crore—two in Odisha and one each in Andhra Pradesh and Punjab—bringing the sanctioned total to ten.