HT Bureau
GUWAHATI, March 2: The India Electronics and Semiconductor Association (IESA), in collaboration with GlobalFoundries India, NXP Semiconductors and the Inter Institutional Inclusive Innovations Center (i4C), announced the winners of the DeepTech Hackathon Grand Finale at the IESA Vision Summit 2026.
The hackathon was designed as a national platform to identify and nurture young engineering talent as India advances toward a self-reliant semiconductor ecosystem.
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With the country accelerating its ambitions under the India Semiconductor Mission, organisers said strengthening capabilities across the entire semiconductor value chain has become imperative.
The DeepTech Hackathon challenged participants to develop AI-enabled Electronic Design Automation (EDA) workflows for an “Edge AI-based Defect Classification System for Semiconductor Images,” addressing real-world manufacturing challenges and reinforcing India’s readiness for design-led chip production.
The competition witnessed participation from 911 teams across 359 colleges, resulting in 532 idea submissions.
Following multiple evaluation stages, including mentorship and technical assessments by experts from GlobalFoundries and NXP, 10 finalist teams competed at the grand finale during the IESA Vision Summit 2026.
Speaking at the event, Ashok Chandak, President of IESA and SEMI India, said India’s semiconductor ecosystem is at a decisive inflection point.
“While the India Semiconductor Mission is unlocking unprecedented investments, the true multiplier lies in talent and deep-tech innovation. This hackathon showcases the depth of India’s semiconductor capability and the power of young engineers to solve complex challenges,” he said.
Chandak also emphasised the convergence of AI and semiconductor technologies, stating that next-generation chip development must align with responsible and human-centric AI principles.
Jitendra Chaddah, Vice President and India Country Head of GlobalFoundries, said the hackathon provided a strong platform for students to apply semiconductor design, manufacturing and AI techniques to real-world challenges.
He noted that the initiative supports building a robust semiconductor ecosystem in India through industry-academia collaboration.
Hitesh Garg, Vice President and India Managing Director of NXP Semiconductors, described the hackathon as timely, given India’s accelerating ambitions in semiconductors and artificial intelligence.
He said the challenge mirrored modern intelligent manufacturing demands by integrating defect detection, Edge AI and real fab-level problem solving, highlighting the growing need for system design engineers capable of combining hardware, software and AI into scalable solutions.
Organisers said the DeepTech Hackathon reflects a broader push to build a future-ready talent pipeline, stimulate intellectual property creation and strengthen India’s position in the global semiconductor and AI landscape.
