India should bank on chip design capability: Cadence

India should take advantage of its chip design capability to come up with products that will not only serve Indian demand but also cater to the global market, said Jaswinder S Ahuja, Corporate Vice President and Managing Director, Cadence Design Systems (India).

In an interaction with DH, on the sidelines of Cadence’s annual flagship user conference CDNLive India 2016, Ahuja said the need of the hour is to build quality product companies to address India’s problems.

“There is a real gap in the product development space which if not filled, would deter India’s progress in the global EDA (Electronic design automation) industry,” he said.
Ahuja said the National Policy of Electronics has all the elements for success but the implementation lacks the momentum.

“The electronic industry requires more investments. Unlike services companies, product companies need time to reach a certain level where they can opt for a ‘go-to-market’ strategy. So tax incentives are meaningless to them and they are looking for a different basket of promotion,” he said.

He pointed out that countries like Israel, South Korea and Taiwan have created vibrant technology ecosystems that enable constant product development and innovation.
“Each of these countries has made innovation, product creation, intellectual property creation and entrepreneurship as part of the national agenda. The economic engine of these countries has realised that innovation is key and governments in the respective countries have supported them,” he said.

When asked about the need for a fab manufacturing facility, Ahuja suggested that India should focus on design-led product development. “We can’t blindly imitate other countries but instead, we should carve our own path. Our strength is designing and therefore policy initiatives should be put in place to stimulate an entrepreneurial ecosystem for the EDA industry,” he said.

Ahuja said Cadence also works closely with startup companies in the country and considers them as partners. “We help them achieve one milestone after another as part of their product cycle. Each of these companies are in their own unique stage and therefore require a different approach,” he said.

He added that in order to improve the ease of doing business in India, the government should help expats register their own companies in India rather than in Silicon Valley. “If we do that the intellectual property will remain in our country. It will further fuel innovation and create wealth,” he said.