• Renesas Electronics allies with MeitY under the C2S programme, signs two MOUs with C-DAC to support Indian startups and universities in VLSI and embedded systems.
• New state-of-the-art offices launched in Bengaluru and Noida, aiming to expand R&D teams and accelerate innovation in automotive and high-performance computing sectors.
• Strategic push to Make in India vision, with Renesas aiming to contribute over 10% of global revenue from India by 2030 and grow headcount to 1,000 by 2025.

Renesas Electronics Corporation, a leading supplier of innovative semiconductor solutions, has announced its alliance with the Government of India, Ministry of Electronics & Information Technology (MeitY), in support of Indian startups and universities in the arena of VLSI and embedded semiconductor systems. Renesas also marked the inauguration of expansion of its offices in Bengaluru and Noida to expand its R&D teams. This strategic action highlights Renesas' focus on innovation and excellence in India and will fuel sustained growth in the region.

Renesas and Centre for Development of Advanced Computing (C-DAC), a self-sustained scientific society of MeitY, signed and exchanged two Memoranda of Understanding (MOUs) today under the MeitY Chips to Startup (C2S) programme. The MOUs are on 

1) Facilitating local startups by allowing them to spur technological innovation and enhance local production in line with the Make in India initiative

2) Industry-academia partnership by developing an innovative, product-oriented mindset among students.

Shri Ashwini Vaishnaw, Minister for Railways, Information & Broadcasting, and Electronics & Information Technology, Government of India; Malini Narayanamoorthi, India Country Manager and VP, MID Engineering, Analog & Connectivity Group at Renesas; and Rea Callendar, Head of Platform Adoption and Ecosystem Enablement at Altium, which collaborated with Renesas in August 2024, were present for the celebration at the Noida office. Renesas CEO Hidetoshi Shibata also participated remotely, highlighting the international importance of this achievement.

India is a strategic market for Renesas, providing great growth opportunities and access to a highly qualified talent pool. Renesas aims to deepen collaborations with Indian local companies, startups, and universities, planning to achieve over 10 percent of its revenue from the entire world from the Indian market in 2030. Recent association involves the OSAT factory project with CG Power and Stars Microelectronics in the state of Gujarat and the MOU with IIT Hyderabad. Renesas is also expanding its operations in India, with plans to increase its headcount to 1,000 by the end of 2025. This growth initiative reinforces Renesas' long-term commitment to India and supports its ambition to become an employer of choice in this dynamic and fast-evolving market.

"The launch of our newly expanded offices is a milestone for Renesas in India. It is a testament to our continued dedication to innovation, excellence, and the development of indigenous talent. In developing products in India, for India, and for the world, we continue to drive growth and make a real impact in the Indian market", stated Malini Narayanamoorthi, India Country Manager and VP, MID Engineering, Analog & Connectivity Group at Renesas. "We are honored to sign two MOUs under the MeitY C2S program, aimed at driving research, promoting innovation, and developing product-oriented engineers". These strategic partnerships dovetail the Make in India programme, with a focus on building indigenous design and manufacturing skills and enabling domestic talent to power the industry's future.

MOUs under MeitY C2S programme

Renesas and C-DAC signed two MOUs to cooperate in the area of VLSI and embedded semiconductor systems with a view to assisting local startups and academic institutions to drive innovation and achieve self-reliance in India's semiconductor and product ecosystem. The C2S programme involves cooperation with more than 250 R&D organizations and academic institutions in the country, including IITs, NITs, IIITs, government and private colleges, as well as around 15 startups, thus building a robust ecosystem for indigenous innovation.

MOU for Startups: Renesas will assist in enhancing the product engineering skills of local startups by donating Renesas development boards and Altium Designer, world-leading PCB design software.

MOU for Educational Institutions: Development boards, PCB learning and training, Altium Designer software, and access to the Altium 365 cloud platform will be provided by Renesas for experiential learning with a view to empowering the future generation of electronics engineers and fostering a community of innovation leaders.

New offices in Bengaluru and Noida to be opened

In May, Renesas centralized and moved its current offices in Bengaluru and Noida to new state-of-the-art office facilities, a major achievement in the expansion and growth of the company in India.

The Bengaluru office is Renesas' largest facility in India, housing world-class design teams, test labs, and full-fledged facilities to support staff. It unites around 500 team members, comprising R&D engineers, business teams, and the staff of the newly acquired Altium and Part Analytics, into a single and cohesive working environment. The facility will be utilized to harness India's strong talent ecosystem to develop innovative products.

The new Noida office combines the engineering and business teams under one roof to speed up the delivery of best-in-class high-performance compute solutions, fuel automotive market growth with innovation, collaboration, and execution consistency. The strategic expansion complements Renesas' strategy to invest in local talent with the best-in-class skills and enhance its expertise in R-Car system-on-chip (SoC) solutions. Aimed at bringing the latest tools and workflows together, the new Noida facility will further strengthen collaboration among the global engineering team and enable Renesas' long-term vision in this strategic area.

Chips to Startup (C2S) programme: A programme initiated by the Indian government in December 2021 to enhance semiconductor and display production in India. C2S not just focuses on capacity building of talent in VLSI/Embedded System Design sector but also on each player in the electronics value chain through capacity building of special manpower, creation of reusable IPs repository, system design of application-specific Systems/ASICs/FPGAs, and deployment through academia R&D organization in the form of harnessing expertize available within Startups/MSMEs. For details, please access the C2S programme site.