In a first, 3-nanometre chips will be designed in India, announces Minister Ashwini Vaishnaw

NEW DELHI: Union Minister for Electronics and Information Technology, Railways, and Information and Broadcasting Ashwini Vaishnaw on Tuesday inaugurated two new state-of-the-art design facilities of Renesas Electronics India Pvt Ltd located in Noida and Bengaluru, an official release from the Ministry of Electronics and IT said.

Highlighting the uniqueness of the new facility, Vaishnaw informed that this is India’s first design centre to work on cutting-edge 3-nanometre chip design, a milestone that places India firmly in the global league of semiconductor innovation. “Designing at 3nm is truly next-generation. We’ve done 7nm and 5nm earlier, but this marks a new frontier”, Vaishnaw said. “In a first, 3nm chips will be designed in India”, Vaishnaw posted on X.

In a first, 3nm chips will be designed in India. pic.twitter.com/jnqQZBQ1Zo

— Ashwini Vaishnaw (@AshwiniVaishnaw) May 13, 2025

The minister also elaborated on India’s holistic semiconductor strategy encompassing design, fabrication, ATMP (Assembly, Testing, Marking, and Packaging), equipment, chemicals, and gas supply chains. He cited industry confidence witnessed at global platforms like Davos and mentioned significant investments already being made by companies such as Applied Materials and Lam Research.

Highlighting the growing momentum in India’s semiconductor ecosystem, the Minister said that the inauguration of this major Semiconductor Design Centre in Uttar Pradesh is a critical step towards developing a pan-India ecosystem that harnesses the rich talent available across the country.

To further strengthen the semiconductor ecosystem, the Government of India has been actively encouraging the development of semiconductor design centres in the country. The Minister announced the launch of a new semiconductor learning kit aimed at enhancing practical hardware skills among engineering students.

“Focus on Products” – along with software!

Academic institutions will now receive microcontroller-based development boards in addition to EDA tools, enabling product development.

– 5 reusable boards per institute
– 250+ institutions under Chips to Startup (C2S) program
– 70… pic.twitter.com/qhnWssprpi

— Ashwini Vaishnaw (@AshwiniVaishnaw) May 13, 2025

He also said that 270+ academic institutions that have already received advanced EDA (Electronics, Design, Automation) software tools under the India Semiconductor Mission will also receive these hands-on hardware kits. “This integration of software and hardware learning will create truly industry-ready engineers. We are not just building infrastructure but investing in long-term talent development,” he said.

Vaishnaw also praised the Centre for Development of Advanced Computing (CDAC) and the India Semiconductor Mission (ISM) team for their efficient execution and reaffirmed the government’s commitment to nurturing India into a global semiconductor leader.

The Union Minister further expressed gratitude to Prime Minister Narendra Modi for including semiconductors as a strategic focus area under his broader Aatmanirbhar Bharat vision.

“Within just three years, India’s semiconductor industry has moved from a nascent stage to an emerging global hub, and is now poised for long-term, sustainable growth,” he said.”With the manufacturing of electronic products in smartphones, laptops, servers, medical equipment, defence equipment, automobiles and many other sectors, the demand for semiconductors is going to increase exponentially. Therefore, this momentum for the semiconductor industry’s growth is timely”, Vaishnaw said.

Speaking on the occasion, CEO and MD of Renesas Electronics, Hidetoshi Shibata, said, “India is a strategic cornerstone for our company, with growing contributions in embedded systems, software, and system innovation”. He emphasised Renesas’ commitment to expanding end-to-end semiconductor capabilities in India, from architecture to testing, while supporting over 250 academic institutions and numerous startups through Government-backed initiatives like ISM and PLI.

He added that India’s talent strength and shared Indo-Japan strategic interests will help reinvent the global semiconductor lifecycle. Renesas is an embedded semiconductor solution provider driven by its purpose of ‘Making our lives easier.’ (ANI)