IIT-Delhi inaugurates ‘Bharat Byte’ in Sonepat to boost chip innovation

In a major step towards strengthening India’s deep tech and semiconductor innovation ecosystem, the Atal Incubation Centre (AIC) at IIT-Delhi, in collaboration with the Foundation for Innovation and Technology Transfer (FITT) at IIT-Delhi and industry partner Cadence, has launched the strategic initiative ‘Bharat Byte’ at Technopark in Rai, Sonepat.

The programme aims to build a strong pipeline of deep tech start-ups and innovators working in semiconductor and advanced technology domains. Conceived under the guidance of Dr Nikhil Agarwal, managing director, FITT IIT Delhi, ‘Bharat Byte’ seeks to accelerate India’s contribution to the global chip and semiconductor landscape, aligning with the Prime Minister’s vision that “Oil was black gold, but chips are digital diamonds.”

After inaugurating the programme, Dr Agarwal said ‘Bharat Byte’ represents a national movement to empower innovators and entrepreneurs to develop technologies that will shape India’s digital future. He highlighted the need for collaboration among academia, start-ups and industry to make India a global hub for deep tech and semiconductor innovation.

The launch was followed by a panel discussion on ‘Building India’s Deep tech and Semiconductor Ecosystem’, moderated by Alok Pandey, CEO, AIC IIT Delhi. Among the panellists were Dr Arabinda Mitra, advisor, FITT IIT-Delhi and former scientific secretary; professor BV Ramana Reddy, director, NIT Kurukshetra; Manoj Kumar, director – Innovation, STMicroelectronics; Aashish Gupta, senior vice-president, IvyCap Ventures; and Dr (Col) A Garg, director-general, Gateway Education.

Dr Dinesh Kumar Dixit delivered a technical presentation on the Semiconductor Lab Facility at IIT-Delhi’s Central Research Facility, showcasing the institute’s capabilities in semiconductor fabrication and testing.

Under this initiative, selected start-ups will receive a grant of Rs 10 lakh each and two years of free incubation at AIC Sonepat, along with technical mentorship and infrastructure support from IIT Delhi and Cadence. The event was organised by Dr Himanshu Agrawal of AIC and Tarun Chaturvedi of FITT, IIT-Delhi.