Raghu Panicker, CEO, Keynes Semicon Credit: Keynes Semicon.
Kaynes Semicon, a wholly owned subsidiary of Kaynes Technology, has signed a landmark Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with Lightspeed Photonics, securing India’s first paying customer for Outsourced Semiconductor Assembly and Test (OSAT) services, CEO Raghu Panicker said.
The announcement came at the inauguration of Kaynes Technology’s new electronics manufacturing unit in Hyderabad and marks a major leap for India’s emerging semiconductor ecosystem. Through this partnership, Kaynes Semicon will provide advanced packaging solutions to Lightspeed Photonics. The MoU also highlights high volume manufacturing at Kaynes Semicon.
“This is our first paying OSAT customer in India,” Panicker said, highlighting the importance of the deal. “We will begin with sample and small volume production at our pilot line in Mysore/Hyderabad and then scale up to bulk production once the new facility is fully operational.”
Lightspeed Photonics, a Singapore-based fabless systems developer, specializes in integrating optical interconnects with processors to create modular computing interconnect heterogeneous systems-in-packages (SiPs) under its LightSiP brand. The technology aims to improve server scalability by dramatically increasing data bandwidth and performance per watt while reducing data latency, footprint and power consumption.
Strategic Investments and Advanced Packaging
The deal is particularly significant as it highlights India’s entry into advanced packaging, a high-value added segment of semiconductor manufacturing.
With the global semiconductor industry increasingly focusing on advanced packaging technologies such as silicon photonics, Kaynes Semicon’s foray into this sector positions the company as a key player in the global supply chain. Panicker also revealed that the company has already identified and aligned the equipment required for the project, with plans to install it at its pilot line in Mysore/Hyderabad and eventually in the new facility.
“We are in negotiations with equipment suppliers and are ready to commission the equipment at their facilities, which will enable us to start deploying packages for Lightspeed Photonics within the next four to five months,” he added.
The company expects final approval from the Indian government for its OSAT services to be forthcoming, allowing it to go ahead with its plans. “Approval could come in as little as a week,” he said, emphasizing that preparations are already underway to meet the stringent requirements of advanced semiconductor packaging.
Separate Memorandum of Understanding for Capacity Building
In addition to the MoU with Lightspeed Photonics, Kaynes Semicon has also signed an agreement with the Indian VLSI Association for capacity building. This initiative aims to develop a skilled workforce for the Indian semiconductor industry by partnering with educational institutions to provide training in semiconductor manufacturing. Perceptive Solutions is the implementation partner for this initiative.
According to Satya Gupta, president of the VLSI Association, the aim is to “make India a world-class electronics and semiconductor manufacturing nation.” Bhanupriya K, managing director, Perceptive Solutions, also stressed on the need to train students in the field of semiconductor manufacturing processes.
Through this MoU, Kaynes Semicon will open up its OSAT facilities for packaging to educational institutions associated with the Indian VLSI Association, free of cost.These two MoUs reflect Kaynes Semicon’s commitment to supporting the growth of India’s semiconductor industry with a focus on technology advancement and human resource development.
As the first company to secure a paying OSAT customer in India, Kaynes Semicon is well positioned to contribute significantly to the future of semiconductor manufacturing in the region.
India’s semiconductor ambitions
Both Keynes Semicon MOUs come at a time when India is aggressively pursuing its ambition to become a global semiconductor hub. With the Government of India promoting self-reliance in electronics and setting up a $10 billion incentive scheme to attract semiconductor manufacturing investments, India is poised to play a larger role in the global semiconductor supply chain.
India has so far given approval for three major semiconductor projects, including a wafer fabrication facility and an OSAT factory by the Tata Group, and another OSAT facility by Murugappa Group’s CG Power and Industrial Solutions.
Meanwhile, CG Power has reportedly recently signed agreements with Japanese semiconductor giant Renesas and Thailand’s Stars Microelectronics, an OSAT provider, to set up an OSAT facility in India. The company plans to invest Rs 7,600 crore (US$ 1 billion) in the venture over the next five years.
