Hubbali ESDM Exchange (HEX) Launched to Promote Startups in ESDM Space

The state-run Karnataka Innovation and Technology Services (KITS) and the India Electronics and Semiconductors Association (IESA) jointly unveiled an incubation center at Hubballi in north Karnataka.

"The 5,000-square feet incubation centre in the Hubballi ESDM Exchange (HEX) of the KLE Technological University campus has a world-class lab for prototype, Electronics Enabling Lab (EEL), maker space and tinkering lab and an SMT line for validation of testing machines in the vicinity," IESA chairman Satya Gupta told reporters here.

HEX’s objective is to empower ESDM startups to produce high-quality products from Hubballi, in collaboration with various government agencies, regional incubators and institutions. The Department of Electronics, IT, BT, Science & Technology has approved a grant worth INR 3.2 crore for a period of three years for the project.

"With the Indian ESDM market projected to be $400 billion by this decade, it is imperative that the country becomes self-sufficient (Atmanirbhar) with Indian firms driving the electronics hardware market," noted Gupta on the occasion.

The centre will support the startups with access to labs, mentoring, funding and scale-up programmes.

"We are aiming to help incubate and nurture about 1,000 ESDM startups across the country to build a Rs 1-lakh crore business and generate about 10-lakh jobs in the space during this decade," asserted Gupta.

The state's department of Electronics, IT, BT, Science and Technology is providing Rs 3.2 crore for the incubation centre's facilities.

"We hope the proposed 1,000 ESDM startups will create about 10,000 IP (Intellectual Propriety) patents over the next decade," added Gupta.

Vegam-io, Skycraft Aerospace Ltd, Semiksha Semiconductors Ltd and Celium Devices Ltd are some of the startups incubated in the KLE Centre for Technology Innovation and Entrepreneurship in the university campus.