SEMICON India 2026, the fifth edition of India’s flagship semiconductor conference, concluded at Yashobhoomi, New Delhi, with a sharper focus on building an end-to-end semiconductor ecosystem spanning chip design, fabrication, packaging, equipment, materials, research and talent.
Held from September 17–19 under the theme “Silicon to Systems: Building the Ecosystem,” the event brought together more than 600 exhibitors, including around 300 international participants, from 52 countries. The three-day event recorded 51,656 registrations and cumulative footfall of about 40,000.
From semiconductor plans to commercial production
Prime Minister Narendra Modi inaugurated the conference and highlighted India’s transition from policy formulation and project planning towards commercial semiconductor production.
He also virtually inaugurated commercial production lines at CDIL Semiconductor in Mohali and Suchi Semicon in Surat, taking the number of operational commercial semiconductor units among the 12 projects approved under Semicon 1.0 to five.
The Prime Minister also outlined the next phase of the semiconductor programme through Semicon 2.0, which has an outlay of ₹1,27,500 crore. The programme is structured around six pillars covering design, machines and materials, new fabs, advanced packaging, research and talent development.
56 semiconductor initiatives announced
The three-day event witnessed 56 MoUs, announcements and strategic initiatives across semiconductor design, fabrication, advanced packaging, equipment and materials, power electronics, AI, high-performance computing, R&D, logistics, technology commercialisation and workforce development.
The announcements involved semiconductor manufacturers, equipment and materials companies, chip-design firms, academic institutions and skilling organisations, reflecting the widening scope of India’s semiconductor ambitions.
Beyond fabs to a wider ecosystem
The second day focused on translating the semiconductor mission into wider ecosystem development. Union Minister for Electronics and Information Technology, Railways, and Information & Broadcasting Ashwini Vaishnaw outlined the implementation approach for Semicon 2.0, with emphasis on design, machines and materials, fabs, advanced packaging, applied R&D and talent.
Discussions highlighted that building a globally competitive semiconductor industry will require capabilities beyond fabrication plants, including equipment, materials, gases, chemicals, precision manufacturing, intellectual property and skilled manpower.
The concluding day further focused on technology capability, industry collaboration, ease of doing business, sustainability, displays, workforce development and deep-tech startups.
RISC-V challenge draws 5,045 participants
Indigenous semiconductor innovation and deep-tech entrepreneurship were also prominent at the event.
The Digital India RISC-V Grand Challenge under the Chips to Startup Programme attracted 1,236 teams comprising 5,045 participants. Awards were presented to top-performing teams for solutions built using indigenous VEGA and SHAKTI processor-based system-on-chips.
Three hackathons organised by KLA, Synopsys and Lam Research in partnership with CeNSE-IISc attracted more than 3,800 team registrations from over 900 colleges. Winners received cash prizes, internships, software tools and compute credits.
Global partnerships expand
International engagement remained a key component, with six country roundtables involving the US, Japan, Singapore, Europe, South Korea and Malaysia.
The discussions covered commercial partnerships, technology collaboration, equipment and materials, resilient supply chains, advanced packaging, investment, R&D and talent.
The India-Malaysia roundtable on the final day explored opportunities to combine Malaysia’s established back-end semiconductor capabilities with India’s strengths in design, engineering and manufacturing, including OSAT, advanced packaging, materials, equipment, supply chains and talent.
From silicon to systems
SEMICON India 2026 ultimately sought to broaden the semiconductor narrative from building fabs to creating a complete technology ecosystem.
The event brought together chip design and intellectual property, materials and equipment, fabrication, advanced packaging, electronics manufacturing, R&D, startups, sustainability and talent.
With more than 600 exhibitors, participation from 52 countries and 56 MoUs, announcements and strategic initiatives, the fifth edition provided a platform for investment, technology partnerships, research commercialisation, industry-academia collaboration, startup development, skilling and international cooperation across the semiconductor value chain.