Union Minister Rajeev Chandrasekhar announced on September 22 that the government is constructing a sizable graphics processing unit (GPU) cluster under the India AI program in order to support companies aiming to train artificial intelligence models in the nation.
A collection of PCs with GPUs installed on each node for training neural networks to process images and videos is called a GPU cluster.
Under the Rs 1,100–1,200 crore design-linked incentive plan, the minister stated that the government is looking to support startups and foreign businesses that want to build local intellectual property in chip design for AI applications.
“Apps like ChatGPT are nearly always brought up in discussions about AI nowadays. Real-world AI use cases are our goal. We are developing AI-specific integrated circuits for applications in health, government, and education,” he stated.
Speaking in Delhi one day prior to the official opening of Micron’s semiconductor packaging and assembly plant in Sanand, Gujarat, Chandrasekhar predicted that the project will send a message to other chip makers and investors encouraging them to give India greater consideration in the global electronics value chain. Micron, a manufacturer of computer storage chips, announced on June 22 that it would establish a semiconductor assembly and test plant in Gujarat, requiring an investment of $2.75 billion (about Rs 22,540 crore).
According to a business statement, $825 million (about Rs 6,760 crore) of the plant’s entire cost comes from Micron, with the remaining funds coming from the government in two parts.
Under the plan, the state of Gujarat will provide incentives equal to twenty percent of the project’s entire cost, while the federal government will provide fifty percent of the project’s overall fiscal support. It is anticipated that work on the new assembly and testing facility in Gujarat will start in phases in 2023. Phase 1 will start up in late 2024 and comprise 500,000 square feet of planned cleanroom area.
Rajeev Chandrasekhar stated that a lot of progress has been done in the previous 18 months following the introduction of PM Narendra Modi’s Semiconductor vision and the projected investment of Rs 76,000 crore to stimulate and expand India’s Semicon ecosystem.
Saying, “This is a big milestone in India’s roadmap and growth as a Semiconductor Nation,” Chandrasekhar declared.
Micron stated that the state of Gujarat was chosen because of its well-established talent pipeline in the SANAND Industrial Park, its favorable business environment, and its industrial infrastructure (Gujarat Industrial Development Corporation GIDC).