Strengthening India’s Semiconductor Research Ecosystem

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India’s launch of its first fully indigenous chip, the Vikram-32, marks a significant step forward in the country’s semiconductor journey. While the technology may not yet rival global cutting-edge standards, it signals growing confidence and competence in domestic research and design. However, as India sets its sights on becoming a major player in the global semiconductor landscape, deeper structural challenges remain. Low patent grant rates, a decline in patent applications since 2022, and limited research output in advanced chip design and fabrication continue to hinder progress. India must address these challenges if it aims to emerge as a hub for semiconductor innovation.

India’s Semiconductor IP Landscape 

India passed the Semiconductor Integrated Circuits Layout Design Act (SICLD) in 2000 to protect the layout of integrated circuits (ICs). The act was passed in line with the expanded provisions of the Agreement on Trade-Related Aspects of Intellectual Property Rights (TRIPS), adopted under the World Trade Organization, to facilitate trade in knowledge and creativity. TRIPS first incorporated protections for ICs in 1989, recognising the layout design, or topography, as a form of intellectual property. At the time, this represented a significant step, as advances in computer technology required the placement of numerous transistors on a single layout to enhance processing power, making layout design a key area of differentiation and technological progress. Over time, however, the intellectual property landscape in the semiconductor industry has moved away from layout protection to innovations in software and manufacturing capabilities. 

Only 37.7% of Indian semiconductor applications were granted in 2023. For comparison, the figures for China and the United States were 56.7% and 70.5%, respectively

This is evident from the low number of registrations under SICLD, where only seven have been granted so far, all awarded to two organisations: Bharat Electronics and the Indian Space Research Organisation. While SICLD and TRIPS protect the layout design of ICs, the functionality of an IC has proved to be more valuable than the design. Microchips have highly complex layout designs that are difficult to replicate, making their protection largely redundant. Additionally, layout designs can be easily modified without loss of functionality, and the design is no longer protected by law once alterations are made. As a result, layout design registration has not emerged as a meaningful form of IP protection for India’s semiconductor sector.

On the other hand, semiconductor patents include protection on various aspects of the industry. As the industry becomes more interconnected with reliance on innovations in software and manufacturing, an increasing number of patents are being filed by software companies, foundries and integrated device manufacturers (IDMs). In India, global semiconductor firms such as Qualcomm, Samsung, Huawei, IBM, TSMC, and GlobalFoundries operate in the patents landscape. Qualcomm is the largest foreign contributor to patents in India, and in 2023-24, it submitted 3017 patent applications. 

Domestic patent activity has grown with grants to Indian-origin entities rising from 33 in 2019 to 128 in 2023, marking a 300-percent increase. However, two structural issues stand out: 

While India contributes 5.6% to the share of the top 10% of the most cited papers, the leaders, China and the United States, contribute 24.4% and 22.4% respectively.

1. Low grant rate: Gaps between patent applications and grants can stem from patentability criteria and time lags in processing, normal in the patent filing process. However, only 37.7 percent of Indian semiconductor applications were granted in 2023. For comparison, the figures for China and the United States (US) were 56.7 percent and 70.5 percent, respectively, as shown in Table 1.  This may be due to examination backlogs and capacity constraints, as India employs just 858 patent examiners across all offices. This is considerably low in comparison to the 8,000 (as of 2019) in the US, and 16,000 in China as of 2024.

Table 1: Semiconductor patents granted and applications for countries in 2023

Source: WIPO IP Statistics Data Center

Note: Patent Grate rate is calculated as a ratio of grants over applications

2. Falling applications: Between 2022 and 2023, patent applications fell by 28 percent, reflecting India’s low private research and development investments and the post-2022 slowdown in global electronics demand. 

Research Output and Impact

India has high-quality semiconductor research, particularly in advanced integrated circuits and fabrication. Between 2019 and 2023, India ranked third globally by H-index, which measures research citation impact.  

However, in terms of the share of highly cited publications, India lags considerably behind the leader. While India contributes 5.6 percent to the share of the top 10 percent of the most cited papers, the leaders, China and the US, contribute 24.4 percent and 22.4 percent, respectively. India has a high quality of research; however, the quantity is quite limited. Between 2019 and 2023, India published 714 papers in advanced ICs and fabrication, China and the US published 1,192 and 1,261, respectively. 

Policy Recommendations

In India, the gap between policy ambition and on-ground realities looms large. To convert the semiconductor industry into a globally competitive one, intervention will need to address bottlenecks in patenting and research output. 

For research partnerships,  India can strengthen innovation by deepening collaboration between government, industry and academia to identify new invention areas, assess their commercial viability and align curricula with industry needs.

The first step needs to be expanding its domestic research capabilities by encouraging private players to contribute to this sector, and through partnerships and investments for research. Encouraging private players, streamlining the regulatory framework, offering financing incentives, and exploring public-private collaborative models are viable options. For research partnerships, India can strengthen innovation by deepening collaboration between government, industry, and academia to identify new invention areas, assess their commercial viability and align curricula with industry needs. Such collaborations have demonstrated success in transforming academic interventions into viable commercial options.  Encouraging private investment and fostering government-industry-academia partnerships would strengthen the industry by driving innovation and reducing reliance on imports. 

India’s patent ecosystem faces a capacity constraint, causing backlogs in patent applications. Increasing the number of patent examiners to match global standards is crucial for reducing the time from patent application to grant.

In 2021, India launched the Design Linked Incentive (DLI) scheme to support domestic semiconductor companies. However, so far, the uptake and disbursement under the scheme have been low. To support early-stage funding, the DLI funds can be disbursed in smaller tranches rather than linking them to commercial milestones. Further, the eligibility of the DLI can be expanded to support research groups and academia-industry collaborations. 

The country’s semiconductor ambitions lie at the intersection of technological necessity and economic opportunity. While policy momentum is building, addressing the gap in patenting and research output is crucial to turn India’s design strength into a competitive manufacturing and innovation base. 

Anika Chhillar is a Research Assistant at the Centre for Economy and Growth

• Developing and Emerging Economies
• Cyber and Technology
• India
• Bharat Electronics and ISRO chip design
• chip design innovation
• India’s semiconductor policy
• patent examiners capacity India
• semiconductor innovation policy
• semiconductor R&D investment
• semiconductor research India
• Vikram-32 indigenous chip

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