Chandrasekaran calls chips 'fundamental' to India as Tata's Assam plant runs pilots

Tata Sons chairman N Chandrasekaran said on Tuesday, October 13, 2026, that semiconductors will be fundamental to India's future and that the Tata Group's chip investments are a long-term bet on domestic demand. Speaking at the Bloomberg New Economy forum in New Delhi, he said India is well placed to become a key player in the global chip supply chain because of its talent, its large home market and possible international partnerships. He also cautioned against trying to build the most advanced chip plants, such as two-nanometre fabs, without knowing who will buy their output. His comments came as Tata Electronics runs pilot production at its Rs 27,000 crore chip assembly and test plant at Jagiroad in Assam.

Chandrasekaran's remarks set out how one of India's largest business groups sees the chip industry: not as a race for the most advanced chips, but as a steady build-up of capacity for chips that Indian buyers will need anyway. He said getting the numbers right in two or three years was not the main point, because chips will be fundamentally required by domestic consumers.

His warning about two-nanometre plants is also significant. The most advanced chips need enormous investment and depend on a few global suppliers of equipment and know-how. By arguing that India should not chase such plants without a clear market, the Tata chief is backing a more gradual path that starts with assembly, testing and mature manufacturing processes.

The Assam plant is the most visible example of that approach. It does not make silicon wafers; it takes chips made elsewhere and cuts, bonds, packages and tests them. It will use wire bond, flip chip and integrated systems packaging, and is aimed at chips for cars, electric vehicles, communications equipment and consumer electronics. In February, Tata Electronics and Qualcomm said Qualcomm's automotive modules would be made at Jagiroad for Indian and global carmakers. Tata has also lined up suppliers in Europe, Japan and South-East Asia. The group is separately building a chip fabrication plant at Dholera in Gujarat, and its total chip investment across Gujarat and Assam is about Rs 1.18 lakh crore.

For India's wider manufacturing push, the Assam plant adds capacity in a new region. Several other assembly plants have started production in Gujarat this year, and the Assam unit would add to that base.

Short-term: The Assam plant will keep running pilot batches at partial capacity while the second clean room is completed, ahead of full commercial operations around the turn of the year.

Long-term: If Tata's domestic-demand strategy works, India could build a stable chip packaging and manufacturing base that supplies its car, phone and electronics makers, reducing dependence on imports.

Who is affected: Indian carmakers and electronics companies that buy chips, workers and suppliers in Assam and Gujarat, global partners such as Qualcomm, and investors watching India's semiconductor programme.

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