Best Place To BuildThe $8.5B question: Is India’s CHIP MISSION working? | Insider takes from Mindgrove Technologies CEO
CHAPTERS
- 0:00 – 0:43
Cold open: “What does an electronics engineer do?” (electrons dance)
The episode opens with a playful, Gen-Z-friendly definition of electronics engineering: making “electrons dance” to do useful work. Shashwath ties this to how ubiquitous chips are in modern life and sets up semiconductors as the hidden foundation beneath everyday devices.
- •Electronics engineering framed poetically as making electrons “dance”
- •Data-as-oil analogy: semiconductors as the refinery
- •Electronics embedded everywhere—chips underpin modern life
- •Quick setup for why semiconductors matter
- 0:43 – 1:55
Show and guest setup at IIT Madras: Mindgrove and the builder ecosystem
The host introduces the Best Place to Build podcast from IIT Madras and brings on Shashwath T R, CEO/co-founder of Mindgrove Technologies. They establish their personal rapport, the IIT Madras Research Park context, and why this conversation will be candid and fast-paced.
- •Podcast premise: meeting builders at IIT Madras
- •Guest intro: Shashwath, Mindgrove CEO/co-founder
- •Mindgrove located in IIT Madras Research Park
- •Host-guest familiarity shapes the conversational tone
- 1:55 – 6:03
Why semiconductors are suddenly “hot” in India (and why audiences care)
Shashwath explains the surge of interest: government focus, media attention, and a real underlying shift where everything from cars to daily infrastructure is becoming digital. The chapter connects AI’s rise directly to semiconductor capability and national strategic importance.
- •Government push + media spotlight amplifying attention
- •AI depends on semiconductors for compute
- •Everyday systems (cars, sensors) becoming “smart” and chip-driven
- •Semiconductors framed as critical to security and economic ambition
- 6:03 – 8:46
Mindgrove’s last year: prototype-to-production and go-to-market channels
The conversation turns to Mindgrove’s progress since the previous year: moving from prototypes to mass production and pilots with customers. Shashwath outlines when chips will be available and how distribution works in electronics (e.g., Digi-Key/Mouser-style channels).
- •Timeline: 2021 explore, 2022 commit, 2023–24 prototype, 2025 “grow up”
- •Pilot deployments running on prototype silicon
- •Decision to go for mass production; availability expected in 2026
- •How chips are sold: direct to companies vs electronics distributors/portals
- 8:46 – 14:05
SecureIoT explained: high-performance microcontroller with built-in security
Shashwath describes Mindgrove’s first chip, SecureIoT: a Shakti-core-based microcontroller designed for performance and secure operation. They break down what “high performance” means in embedded contexts and why hardware-rooted cryptography matters as devices connect to the internet.
- •SecureIoT: microcontroller built around IITM’s Shakti core
- •Performance needs rising as embedded systems ingest more sensor data
- •Clock speed as a proxy; performance also depends on architecture/hardware
- •Security algorithms baked into hardware (crypto, signing) for safer IoT
- 14:05 – 16:39
India’s semiconductor momentum: funding signals and assembly/packaging coming online
Shashwath provides an industry wrap: increased investor confidence and early manufacturing progress—especially in assembly, packaging, and testing (OSAT). The host links this to government incentives like DLI and PLI, and they discuss why these steps matter as foundational capacity.
- •Indian funding momentum: examples of semiconductor startups raising capital
- •Manufacturing reality: assembly/packaging as the easiest first step
- •OSAT explained; value-add of packaging and testing
- •Government schemes: DLI (design) and PLI (production/manufacturing)
- 16:39 – 19:37
“Chips for the middle”: where innovation still exists (biometrics, speed, new constraints)
The host challenges Mindgrove’s positioning: not cutting-edge GPUs, but “middle” chips. Shashwath argues innovation persists because problems evolve—modern biometrics and access systems require faster, more secure, more capable embedded compute than earlier generations could deliver.
- •Business strategy: avoid commodity low-end and entrenched high-end
- •Innovation persists as requirements change (speed, security, usability)
- •Biometrics example: moving from slow methods to faster modern systems
- •Process advances (e.g., 28nm availability) enable new embedded capabilities
- 19:37 – 21:07
Convincing investors: finding aligned capital for a mass-market semiconductor thesis
Shashwath explains that fundraising hinges on matching with investors who understand the “middle-market at scale” strategy. He highlights how investor conversations shape positioning and credits IIT Madras as an early backer alongside later institutional and global investors.
- •Investor fit matters more than hype about the ‘cutting edge’
- •“Middle” can be a volume strategy with strong business fundamentals
- •Positioning and product strategy refined in dialogue with investors
- •Early backing from IIT Madras; later investors validate the approach
- 21:07 – 26:33
Next products: CCTV security, edge intelligence, and reducing data leakage
Mindgrove’s roadmap includes a camera chip driven by India’s CCTV demand and security regulation. They discuss the shift from importing designs to bringing design capability in-house, and why edge processing (alerts on-device) reduces bandwidth and improves privacy and responsiveness.
- •Next chip direction: camera/CCTV-oriented silicon
- •Policy tailwinds: stronger CCTV security and certification requirements
- •Edge intelligence: process locally, transmit only alerts where possible
- •Supply-chain reality: design/import/assemble mix; push to consolidate design
- 26:33 – 32:01
Electronics engineer in practice: ultrasound example and how roles evolve
Shashwath walks through early-career work in ultrasound—high-voltage transmit, millivolt receive, timing, safety, and signal processing—to show what electronics engineering looks like end-to-end. He then explains how senior roles expand into debugging, specs, manufacturing, and customer problem discovery, and how chip availability gaps motivated Mindgrove.
- •Ultrasound system design: power in vs weak signal out, safety, imaging pipeline
- •Real engineering work: component selection, connectors, signal integrity tradeoffs
- •Role progression: from hands-on circuits to specs, supply chain, and customers
- •Origin story seed: the ‘right chip’ wasn’t available → build your own
- 32:01 – 40:51
Reading chip block diagrams, prototyping democratization, and AI-enabled tools
Using a Mindgrove chip block diagram as a prop, Shashwath explains how engineers interpret chip capabilities and design systems around them (schematics → PCB). He traces the leap enabled by Arduino/Raspberry Pi and today’s smarter instruments, then discusses early impacts of AI copilots in hardware and EDA workflows.
- •Block diagrams as “what’s on the chip” for system design decisions
- •Prototyping path: breadboards → schematics → PCB layout
- •Open hardware era: faster learning and iteration via Arduino/Raspberry Pi ecosystems
- •AI/tooling shifts: smarter instruments + copilots; experimentation in VLSI/EDA
- 40:51 – 47:20
Skills to enter semiconductors: curiosity, fundamentals, tools, and resilience
Shashwath outlines what it takes to transition into semiconductors, especially mid-career: deep curiosity, strong fundamentals (devices, transistors, logic), and comfort with tools. He emphasizes the emotional reality of long fabrication cycles—failure tolerance, tenacity, and systematic debugging—and notes new “tiny tapeout” style democratization.
- •Core soft skill: curiosity in a vast, fast-changing field
- •Fundamentals: transistor/device knowledge; digital logic vs analog basics
- •Tool fluency: understand both workflows and what’s under the hood
- •Resilience: long cycles, respins, “chip didn’t boot” terror → systematic debugging
- 47:20 – 1:02:35
Personal journey: why Indian electronics lagged, starting during COVID, IIT collaboration (non-IITians too)
Shashwath reflects on India’s earlier detour into services, the later re-acceleration of electronics, and how Mindgrove began during the pandemic through discussions with Sharan and Prof. Kamakoti. He explains how non-IIT founders can still work deeply with IIT Madras by commercializing IIT tech, collaborating with students, and leveraging outward-looking ecosystems like Research Park.
- •Why the industry didn’t ‘take off’ earlier: services pulled talent/capital
- •Mindgrove’s start: COVID-era conversations, Shakti, FPGA phase → need own silicon
- •IIT Madras support: tools, access, networks, incubation advantages
- •Non-IIT founder path: collaborate by commercializing IIT tech + training/hiring students
- 1:02:35 – 1:07:02
Closing reflections: fatherhood, leadership patience, and integrating work and family
The episode ends on a personal note about fatherhood shaping startup leadership—patience, long horizons, and learning to manage like a parent. Shashwath rejects a rigid separation of work and life, describing a model where family is present in the journey, and the host closes with wrap-up and where to follow Mindgrove.
- •Startup and parenting parallels: patience, deep breaths, long-term thinking
- •Motivation: building independence and an example for children
- •Work-life integration (JFK desk image): kids can be part of the work world
- •Final call-to-action: follow Mindgrove and watch for products on electronics portals
