Karnataka IT Minister Priyank Kharge launches the state's first Very Large Scale Integration (K-VLSI) program at the Bengaluru Tech Summit to add skilled talent to the Electronic Systems Design and Manufacturing (ESDM) sector.

Launched in collaboration with the Karnataka Digital Economy Mission (KDEM) and the Indian Electronics and Semiconductor Association (IESA), the Semiconductor Fabless Accelerator Lab (SFAL) offers an advanced certification program for VLSI design and verification.

IIIT Bangalore’s Center of Excellence for Machine Intelligence will implement the program, along with industry training partner FutureWiz. The first cohort of 60 students, selected out of 2,000 applicants, will undergo a comprehensive, fully funded six-month course for the certificate.

Kharge says the program will give a further boost to growth and talent availability in Karnataka's VLSI design sector and attract semiconductor companies to set up operations in the state.

VLSI design is the process of designing integrated circuits (ICs) by integrating thousands, millions or even billions of transistors on a single chip.

Electronic Systems Design and Manufacturing (ESDM) is a growing industry in Karnataka. The state has a thriving large-scale semiconductor industry, and the availability of qualified resources could become a critical barrier to the growth of the ESDM industry.

The training program creates a First-Day-First-Hour talent pool ready for the VLSI design industry. The program exposes participants to real-world design challenges and equips them with industry-relevant skills.

State IT Minister Priyank Kharge said Karnataka is expanding its focus beyond India's IT ecosystem to attract investments from global companies, especially electronics and semiconductors.