Nvidia, one of the world leaders in AI technology, has shown interest in partnering with India to develop a semiconductor chip, according to sources familiar with the matter. Jensen Huang, Nvidia’s CEO, discussed this proposal with Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi earlier this year. The plan aims to combine India’s strong semiconductor design expertise with Nvidia’s technology to address the country’s growing tech demands.
India is home to about 19% of the world’s chip designers, many of whom work for major global companies. Nvidia sees a great opportunity to tap into this talent pool while taking advantage of India’s large and growing technology market.
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By collaborating with India, the company hopes to develop chips that meet the country’s specific needs, including AI-powered solutions for government projects, infrastructure improvements, and startups working on innovative technologies.
One potential use of the AI chip is for security improvements, such as those under the Kavach project for Indian Railways. The chip could also be used for other government applications or projects that help India achieve its AI goals.
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The proposed chip development would be a joint effort. Nvidia plans to design the core parts of the chip in cooperation with international firms like Arm or AMD. However, the final layer of customisation, accounting for 10-20% of the chip’s design, would be handled by Indian entities, such as the Centre for Development of Advanced Computing (C-DAC) or private chip design firms. This local customisation would allow the chip to address India’s specific needs and encourage the development of local semiconductor expertise.
By co-developing the chip, India would gain intellectual property (IP) rights, which could lead to more affordable manufacturing of chips and further growth in the country’s AI and tech sectors.
India’s booming AI landscape, combined with Nvidia’s AI expertise, makes this partnership highly promising.