India’s Silicon Moment, Swish Club Becomes SwishX, and DPMACI Formation

India’s tech story is no longer only about writing software for the world. It is slowly moving toward designing the silicon that will run the world.

That is the real meaning of India’s semiconductor push. For years, Bengaluru and Noida were called tech hubs, but much of the work sat inside global capability centres of Intel, Qualcomm, Texas Instruments and Nvidia. India had engineers, but not enough Indian-owned chip IP. The new wave is trying to change that.

The timing is important.

AI has made compute the new bottleneck. Every drone, EV, smart meter, factory camera, defence system and appliance now needs more intelligence at the edge. Sending everything to the cloud is slow, expensive and power-hungry. That is why startups like HrdWyr, BigEndian, Morphing Machines, Mindgrove and C2i matter. They are not trying to beat Nvidia in data centres. They are trying to build application-specific chips for India-like use cases: heat, dust, low power, unreliable connectivity, EV batteries, logistics, surveillance and industrial automation.

This is a much better strategy than blindly chasing fabs.

A cutting-edge fabrication plant can cost $10-20 billion and become outdated in a few years. Fabless design, on the other hand, lets India use its strongest asset: chip-design talent. India already contributes nearly 20% of the global semiconductor design workforce. The opportunity is to convert that talent from outsourced design work into sovereign IP. In simple terms, India should not only assemble chips. It should own the brain inside them.

The policy environment is finally catching up. The ₹76,000 crore Semicon India programme reduces project risk. The Design Linked Incentive scheme offers up to ₹15 crore per application and 4-6% of net sales turnover. The new deep-tech framework gives qualifying startups up to 20 years of recognition, which is critical because a chip company cannot be judged like a SaaS startup. A SaaS product can iterate weekly. A chip tape-out can take 18-24 months and cost millions.

That is also the biggest risk.

In software, bugs can be fixed after launch. In semiconductors, one design error can kill the company. A failed tape-out can burn $2-5 million and 18 months. EDA tools from Synopsys and Cadence are expensive. Foundry slots at TSMC are hard to secure. India’s OSAT ecosystem is improving with players like Kaynes, but it is still young.

Talent is another bottleneck. India has many engineers, but not enough verification experts and tape-out managers. Senior VLSI salaries are already rising sharply, with top verification roles touching ₹45-50 lakh plus. By 2027, the sector could face a shortage of over 250,000 skilled semiconductor professionals.

The lesson from Micromax, Karbonn and Lava is clear. Hardware without IP becomes trading. Once Chinese brands entered directly, India’s phone brands collapsed because they did not control design, chips or supply chains.

This time, India cannot afford another hardware graveyard.

Let’s go through what else is happening in Indian startup world - Grab your simmering cup of StartupChai.in and unwind with our hand-brewed memes.

“Kisi Ko Pata Nahi Chalega”: Swish Club Rebrands To SwishX, Pivots To AI For Pharma

Swish Club has shed its old skin and rebranded as SwishX, swapping its device leasing business for an AI-first play in the pharmaceutical sector. The startup will now build agentic AI tools to help drug companies automate everything from sales and marketing to distribution and growth.

After a difficult transition that included layoffs, SwishX is betting big on becoming the operating system for the entire lifecycle of generic medicines.

Read more here

“Mushqil Waqt Commando Sakht”: Digital Gold Platforms Band Together To Form New SRO

India’s digital gold platforms have come together to form a new self-regulatory body, DPMACI, as scrutiny around the sector intensifies.

Its first move is to ensure every unit of digital gold is backed by physical metal in a strict 1:1 ratio. The group is also building an ombudsman system after SEBI warned investors about the risks of unregulated platforms.

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“Lock-In Khula, Stock Hila”: Groww Slides After Block Deal Buzz

Groww’s shares fell as much as 7% intraday to ₹180.15 after reports said existing investors were looking to sell shares worth up to ₹4,750 Cr through block deals. The fall also came as its six-month post-IPO lock-in expired, making nearly 418.2 Cr shares eligible for trading.

The move shows how post-IPO supply pressure can quickly test even high-conviction new-age tech listings.

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“Pardes Mein Partner Mil Gaya”: InCred Capital Acquires Singapore-Based S Cube Capital

InCred Capital has acquired Singapore-based S Cube Capital to deepen its presence in offshore wealth management.

The firm will fold S Cube into its Singapore entity, adding to its earlier acquisition of Dubai-based Arrow Capital. With operations spanning India, Singapore, Dubai, and London, InCred is steadily building a global footprint.

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“Sarkari VC Mode On”: ONGC Plans ₹200 Cr Fund For Energy And AI Startups

ONGC is planning a new ₹200 Cr fund to back startups working in energy and AI/ML. The state-run company has sought applications for two advisors who will help evaluate startups, conduct due diligence, negotiate valuations, monitor portfolio companies, and advise on investments and exits.

The move builds on ONGC’s earlier ₹100 Cr startup fund launched in 2016 for oil and gas startups.

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1. Electronics manufacturing platform Mekr has raised ₹67 Cr in a funding round led by Avaana Capital, with participation from Titan Capital Winners Fund. The startup will use the fresh capital to ramp up R&D, product engineering, and supplier localization.

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2. Semiconductor startup HrdWyr has raised $13 Mn (₹124 Cr) in a Series A round led by Ideaspring Capital. The startup will use the fresh capital to accelerate development of its AI-native chips and grow its presence in global markets.

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3. Bengaluru-based Dil Foods has raised ₹72 Cr to expand into more cities, add new cuisines, and strengthen its supply chain. Already operating across 340 pincodes, the startup aims to reach 600 locations by FY28 through its network of restaurant partners.

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4. ONGC is considering a new ₹200 Cr fund to invest in startups working in energy, cleantech, and AI. The proposed corpus would build on its earlier ₹100 Cr startup fund as the PSU looks to tap into India’s fast-growing clean energy ecosystem.

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5. 3one4 Capital is preparing to launch its fifth fund with a target corpus of $225 Mn. The new fund will continue backing early-stage startups across AI, SaaS, fintech, deeptech, and consumer internet.

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6. Wealthtech startup Centricity is in talks to raise around $30 Mn in a new funding round led by Mitsubishi UFJ Financial Group (MUFG) and Susquehanna International Group (SIG). The Gurugram-based startup is likely to be valued at about $250 Mn if the deal goes through.

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7. SCIKIQ has raised $1.5 Mn in a pre-Series A round led by Triton Investment Advisors. The enterprise AI startup will use the capital to expand across the US, UK, UAE, and India while strengthening its DataHub platform and AI capabilities.

   Read more here