Confident that India-US partnership will shape the future of AI, says Rajeev Chandrasekhar

Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s visit to the United States has been highly significant. Alongside the signing of a Memorandum of Understanding between General Electric (GE) and Hindustan Aeronautics Limited (HAL) for jet engine production, the two countries have joined forces in various other areas. India and the United States are set to enhance their collaboration in technology development, cybersecurity, and the space sector. However, the most significant partnership between the two nations lies in the semiconductor industry. On Thursday, Micron Technology Inc, a US-based company, announced its plans to establish a semiconductor testing and assembly facility worth $2.75 billion in India. This marks the first approval under the Indian government’s ambitious $10-billion Semicon incentive plan, which recently received the green light from the Union Cabinet. Rajeev Chandrasekhar, the Minister of State for IT and Electronics, expressed his view on the historic nature of PM Modi’s US visit. He emphasized the policy decisions made over the past years to position India as a player in the global semiconductor supply chain. He highlighted the significant progress made in the semiconductor ecosystem since December 2021, with the emergence of numerous startups in the semiconductor design sector. In an exclusive interview with CNBC-TV18, Chandrasekhar mentioned that the details regarding the investments from the Central and State governments would be decided later. He shared that the project is valued at $3 billion and is expected to create a minimum of 20,000 jobs. Over the past 18 months, efforts have been made to build a semiconductor ecosystem, covering areas such as design, talent, packaging, and research, with future plans for fabrication facilities (fabs). Chandrasekhar sees the investments by Micron, Lam Research, and Applied Materials as significant milestones in India’s semiconductor ecosystem. The Minister emphasized the government’s clear focus on artificial intelligence (AI) and its intent to explore multiple avenues for collaboration with the United States. The government is currently working on establishing an AI ecosystem in India, although the technology is still in its early stages. Micron Technology has proposed an investment of $2.75 billion (Rs 22,516 crore) over the next five years. The proposed technology includes various products such as DORS, DOR 6, NAND 4 Die Stanu NAND 8 Die Stack, and 550. It also involves a wire bonding process for DDR4 and DORS, as well as Direct Chip Attach (DCA) and Post fab Wafer Finish (PW)-DDRG. As part of the Indian government’s incentive, they have committed to providing 50 percent of the actual CAPEX, up to a limit of Rs 11,258 crores, on a pari-passu basis. The Minister is confident that the partnership between India and the United States will shape the future of artificial intelligence (AI). He mentioned that the Prime Minister has long expressed India’s commitment to the growth of AI, recognizing its potential as a powerful tool and enabler for the digital economy and governance. The Prime Minister sees various applications of AI in sectors such as healthcare and education. Read all the  Latest News ,  Trending News ,  Cricket News ,  Bollywood News , India News  and  Entertainment News  here. Follow us on  Facebook,  Twitter and  Instagram.