KOCHI: Never in their wildest dreams did this duo think a casual chit-chat during a college reunion would pave the way for a business idea that would win laurels on various platforms. Their startup Silizium Circuits, today, bets big on the huge demand for semiconductors in India, say Arun Ashok and Rijin John. “India meets its need for semiconductors through import. Hence, this sector has both commercial and strategic importance to the country’s long-term growth strategies,” notes Rijin.
“The Indian government and its entire machinery are looking into creating wonders in this space. Design Linked Incentive (DLI) and Production Linked Incentive (PLI) schemes are a few examples of the steps the government is taking to boost domestic manufacture of semiconductors and advanced automotive technology products.”
Hence, the duo believes, it’s the right time for fabless startups in India to make the best use of this conducive ecosystem. Team Silizium, they add, is confident enough to take the game forward.
Looking back at the day when the idea for the startup germinated, Rijin says, “When I met my friend and former classmate Arun Ashok, co-founder and CTO of the startup, he talked about his post-graduation and PhD in semiconductor RIFC (radio frequency integrated circuits) sector in Germany. I shared about my entrepreneurial journey, and views on the potential of semiconductors in India.”
The meeting was “very short”, but the two old friends in touch and discussed more on the topic. “Arun shared his thoughts of setting up ‘Silizium Circuits’ during one of these discussions,” recalls Rijin.
After some more deliberations, the duo decided to take the plunge. “Setting up the startup and marking each other’s role in the company were easy since we knew each other for years,” says Arun, who was a scientist at the ISRO Semiconductor Foundry in Chandigarh.
Rijin, with hands-on experience in business, picked the role of director of strategy, sales and marketing. His eight years of experience in the telecom radio frequency field and three international patent filings were add-ons.
“The initial few months were tough,” says Rijin. “We were scouting for multiple opportunities. The ministry of electronics and information technology’s (MeitY) request for proposal for Navigation with Indian Constellation (NavIC) was a breakthrough that gave us direction and focus.” Soon came the turning point: a strategic investment from IIT Hyderabad Fabless Chip Design Incubator. “That was a litmus test for our startup,” says Rijin.
Subsequently, Silizium participated in various competitions and challenges hosted by the government as well as private entities. “We have won over Rs 75 lakh in prize money from various platforms,” says Rijin. “This helped us to increase visibility and maintain cash flow to sail through the ‘minimum viable product’ waves, as we were bootstrapped.”
Based on the potential customer requirements the duo zeroed in on front end module design for global navigation satellite systems (GNSS) and 5G. “We taped out (printing the final design before manufacturing) successfully by the end of August,” says Arun. “The lead time for the first tapeout was only nine months. We see this as a great achievement, considering our limited resources.”
Arun adds that Silizium has partnered with key stakeholders in the “semiconductor ecosystem”, right from foundry to post-silicon vendors. “Also, our IPs (intellectual property) will be at par or better than their international counterparts, and will come at competitive pricing,” he says.
Notably, Silizium was one of the top 100 semifinalists in the Swadeshi Microprocessor Challenge, and also won Kerala Startup Mission’s Idea Grant and Nidhi Prayas. It also made it to the prestigious Top 10 in NXP 2022 Cohort.
Winning Maker Village’s ‘Intelligence in Chip, Tomorrow of Integrated Circuits’ challenge based on artificial intelligence and machine learning was another feather on the startup’s crown.
Recently, the Indian Electronics and Semiconductor Association judged Silizium as the ‘Most Promising Startup - Semiconductor IPs, SoC, Systems’.
On the stiff competition in the sector, Rijin says: “The majority of semiconductor companies in India and overseas are in the digital domain. So, Silizium, being an analog radio frequency and mixed-signal IP venture, is welcomed for discussion as a potential partner, rather than a competitor.”
Rijin adds Silizium has another advantage over electronics hardware companies, as it is asset-light, replicable and scalable to cater to multiple sectors across the globe. “We took the decision to register Silizium as a startup company during the pandemic peak, when other ventures were shutting down,” the duo say.
“Convincing ourselves and overcoming the mental block was the first major challenge. Now, we are on a mission to replace analog radio frequency IP imports with indigenous Silizium Circuits IPs by 2025,” says Rijin.
The startup’s aim is to become India’s largest analog radio frequency IP exporter by 2030, he adds.
“That would be our humble contribution towards Atmanirbhar Bharat, Make In India and Make for world initiatives,” Rijin smiles.