At the recent Accenture Semicon FutureCast 2024, Shilpa Singhai, Managing Director & Lead – High Tech, Accenture in India, joined L. Subramanyan, publisher of CXOtoday, for a fireside chat on the ambitious yet challenging path India faces in building a self-reliant semiconductor ecosystem.
How Late is Too Late?
India is 70 years late to the semiconductor industry, but its ambitions to become a major player in this sector are clear. The challenges are manifold: India faces competition from well-established global players who have invested billions into their semiconductor ecosystems. Despite the late start, Singhai emphasized that India’s journey is aligned with the right direction for growth.
She highlighted key sectors—automotive, industrial, and consumer electronics—as areas where India already has significant demand. However, to reduce heavy imports and become self-reliant, India must focus on building its local productization in these segments. States like Karnataka, Gujarat, and Maharashtra are making strides by incentivizing investments in the electronics value chain, which will help develop the broader semiconductor ecosystem.
Global and Domestic Demand: Striking the Balance
Singhai touched on the importance of both global and domestic demand. Globally, India is capitalizing on the “China Plus One” strategy, aiming to position itself as a viable alternative in the global supply chain. Domestically, India’s $120 billion electronics industry still relies heavily on imports, with only 40% of its manufacturing done locally. While global demand is high, catalyzing domestic demand will require concerted efforts to build out the supporting value chain and promote true “Make in India” initiatives.
Addressing the Challenges: Capital, Technology, and Talent
Although India has made progress in securing capital for the next 3-5 years through government incentives and commitments from industrial houses, there remains much work to be done on the implementation front. Establishing fabs, managing technology partnerships, and navigating the entire life cycle of plant creation are daunting tasks.
One of the most pressing challenges, according to Singhai, is talent development. While India boasts a deep talent pool, scaling the necessary skills for various segments of the semiconductor value chain remains difficult. Training specialized talent for areas like design, equipment, and testing is crucial. Singhai stressed the need for technology-driven platforms to accelerate learning and bridge the talent gap at scale. Industry bodies and educational institutions like IIT Bombay are already stepping up to address this, but the road ahead will require collaborative efforts from all stakeholders.
Accenture’s Role in the Indian Semiconductor Ecosystem
Accenture has positioned itself as a consulting-first player in India’s burgeoning semiconductor ecosystem. With extensive experience in silicon design and engineering services, as well as expertise in capital project advisory, supply chain management, and workforce development, Accenture is well-equipped to support the sector’s growth.
Singhai mentioned that Accenture’s design services, bolstered by recent acquisitions like Zenta, Centra, and XtremeEDA, will play a key role in helping both semiconductor companies and end-market players in automotive and consumer electronics. With a stronghold in technology, Accenture also aims to be a trusted partner for enterprise technology upgrades and digital-first manufacturing solutions.
A Hopeful Beginning and A Promising Future
Despite the challenges, Singhai is “very optimistic” about India’s semiconductor journey. With the right investments, supportive government policies, and increasing collaboration between industry players, she believes the future is promising. Accenture plans to work closely with government bodies to institutionalize the current momentum and help create a robust semiconductor ecosystem in India.
As India seeks to make its mark on the global semiconductor stage, partnerships, innovation, and talent development will be key to turning ambition into reality.
With inputs from Accenture.
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