Ashwini Vaishnaw outlines ISM 2.0 roadmap; 25 MoUs and strategic announcements strengthen India’s ‘Silicon to Systems’ ambitions
New Delhi: The second day of SEMICON India 2026, held at Yashobhoomi, New Delhi, brought together policymakers, global semiconductor companies, Indian industry, researchers, startups, academia and students for discussions on manufacturing, supply chains, R&D, chip design, advanced packaging, materials, international partnerships and talent development.
The deliberations highlighted India’s progress towards building an integrated and globally competitive “Silicon to Systems” semiconductor ecosystem.
ISM 2.0 to build on India’s semiconductor momentum
In a fireside conversation, Union Minister for Electronics & Information Technology, Railways, and Information & Broadcasting Ashwini Vaishnaw said India’s semiconductor mission has moved from demonstrating intent to executing projects at scale.
He said India Semiconductor Mission (ISM) 2.0 would build upon the foundation established under ISM 1.0 through six key pillars — design; machines and materials; setting up more fabs; strengthening the ATMP/OSAT industry; research and development; and talent development.
Vaishnaw noted that ISM 1.0, initially conceived as a six-year programme, achieved its objectives within four years. He expressed confidence that ISM 2.0 could also progress ahead of schedule, supported by growing investor interest in India’s semiconductor sector.
The Minister identified chip design as one of India’s key strengths and said at least 200 chip design companies could emerge under ISM 2.0. He described this as a potential “game changer” for developing home-grown semiconductor intellectual property.
More than 105 chip-design startups have gained access to advanced Electronic Design Automation (EDA) tools, while 20 startups have secured venture capital funding. Around 70,000 chip-design engineers have also been trained over the past four years against a target of 85,000.
Vaishnaw stressed that global competitiveness requires a combination of quality and competitive costs. He also highlighted that five of the 12 plants approved under ISM 1.0 have commenced commercial production.
From design services to ‘Product Nation’
Interacting with the media, Vaishnaw highlighted the strong domestic and international participation at SEMICON India 2026 and the extensive business-to-business engagements taking place during the event.
He said India is gradually moving beyond its traditional strength in design services towards becoming a “Product Nation”, with Indian-designed chips increasingly finding applications in end products.
The Minister also identified semiconductor machinery and materials, specialised logistics, sustainability, water recycling and industry-ready talent as important components of India’s emerging semiconductor ecosystem.
25 MoUs and strategic announcements
Day 2 witnessed 25 MoUs, announcements and strategic collaborations involving Indian and global ecosystem partners. The initiatives covered semiconductor materials, manufacturing, power electronics, advanced packaging, logistics, design, deep-tech investment and skilling.
The collaborations are aimed at strengthening domestic capabilities across different segments of the semiconductor value chain and promoting greater localisation of critical technologies and inputs.
Global partnerships and resilient supply chains
Foreign Secretary Vikram Misri emphasised the importance of trusted international partnerships for building resilient semiconductor supply chains. He identified reliability, credibility, incentives and value creation as important pillars of cooperation.
He also called for a balanced approach to self-reliance that combines India’s domestic strengths with global technologies and capabilities.
The ‘Supply Chain 360’ panel focused on localisation of critical inputs and the development of resilient semiconductor supply networks.
AI and next-generation chip technologies
Discussions during the day also examined the growing impact of Artificial Intelligence (AI) on semiconductor design and manufacturing.
Ruchir Dixit of Siemens EDA highlighted the need to address rising AI-driven computing requirements through advanced architectures, 3D ICs, advanced packaging and chip-system co-design.
Gokul V. Subramaniam of Intel discussed AI applications across various stages of chip development, including RTL generation, verification, floorplanning, power analysis, clock-tree synthesis and physical design.
At the ‘From Concept to Silicon’ session, speakers stressed the importance of access to EDA tools, prototyping, fabrication, packaging and testing, along with stronger industry-academia collaboration to bridge the gap between semiconductor design and commercial products.
Sandeep Kumar, CEO, L&T Semiconductor Technologies, highlighted the transformation taking place in semiconductor architecture through chiplets, AI, high-speed interconnects and near-package optics. He also stressed the need to develop deeper capabilities in system architecture, power electronics, memory, optics and foundry supply chains.
India’s opportunities across the global value chain
A fireside discussion featuring Ajit Manocha, President and CEO, SEMI, and Mark Patel, Senior Partner, McKinsey & Company, examined the rapid expansion of the global semiconductor industry and opportunities for India to strengthen its capabilities in selected segments of the global value chain.
Nivruti Rai, MD and CEO, Invest India, discussed the evolution of the semiconductor industry from the Integrated Device Manufacturer era to the foundry and fabless models and now towards an AI- and advanced-packaging-led phase.
She identified memory, High Bandwidth Memory (HBM), fabs, advanced packaging, materials, chiplets and heterogeneous integration as important opportunities for India, while emphasising the combination of India’s engineering talent and market demand with global technology, capital and manufacturing expertise.
R&D, states and workforce development
The session on Research and Development for Advanced Technologies, moderated by Sunita Verma, Scientist G and Group Coordinator, R&D Electronics, MeitY, focused on indigenous R&D, intellectual property and commercialisation as critical drivers of the next phase of semiconductor growth.
The State Spotlight session highlighted initiatives by Assam, Odisha, Gujarat and Karnataka in areas including incentives, infrastructure, ease of doing business and industry-linked skilling.
Sessions on Women in Manufacturing focused on expanding opportunities for women across semiconductor manufacturing, packaging, equipment engineering, quality, supply chains, automation and plant leadership.
The Workforce Development sessions underlined the need for an industry-ready talent pipeline covering chip design, manufacturing, packaging, equipment, quality and supply chains through practical training and stronger industry-academia linkages.
India Display Conference 2026
The India Display Conference 2026 explored opportunities for India to move beyond display assembly and develop deeper domestic capabilities. Discussions covered advanced LCD, MiniLED, Quantum Dot and OLED technologies, their applications and supporting research.
Country Roundtables deepen international engagement
The India-Singapore Country Roundtable, attended by 142 participants, explored cooperation by combining Singapore’s strengths in manufacturing, advanced packaging and supply chains with India’s engineering talent, market scale and expanding semiconductor ecosystem. Discussions covered equipment and materials, advanced packaging, R&D, testing, investment and talent.
The India-Europe Country Roundtable, with 139 participants, focused on investment, supply-chain localisation, equipment and materials, manufacturing, advanced packaging, semiconductor design, R&D and talent. Discussions also explored opportunities in 2.5D/3D packaging, chiplets and heterogeneous integration.
Meanwhile, the India-South Korea Country Roundtable, attended by 115 participants, examined opportunities for cooperation across manufacturing, technology, materials, advanced packaging, investment and supply chains, bringing together South Korea’s established semiconductor capabilities and India’s expanding market and engineering base.
India’s semiconductor ambitions gather momentum
Day 2 of SEMICON India 2026 reinforced the country’s efforts to build capabilities across the entire semiconductor value chain — from research, design and intellectual property to materials, equipment, fabs, advanced packaging, products and talent.
Around 16,000 participants attended the second day, reflecting strong industry, research and international engagement. The event highlighted the growing role of indigenous innovation, investment and global partnerships in strengthening India’s position as a trusted partner for semiconductor design, manufacturing and innovation.