India to fabricate its first chip in two years as Nvidia, AMD and Micron pledge to expand to the country

Published

1 year ago

October 1, 2024

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Indian Minister of Commerce and Industry, Consumer Affairs, Food and Public Distribution and Textiles Shri Piyush Goyal is talking to media on EU-India trade relations. India will waive tariffs on industrial imports from four European nations for a $100 billion investment over 15 years, ending nearly 16 years of negotiations.

Thierry Monasse | Getty Images News | Getty Images

India will fabricate its first chip in two years, Commerce Minister Piyush Goyal told CNBC during a one-on-one interview in New York.

India’s push into semiconductors comes as more U.S. chipmakers set their sights on India. Nvidia, AMD, Micron are among the U.S. companies that have pledged to expand in the country.

“I’m in touch with the Micron CEO regularly, and they are making good progress,” Goyal said.

Goyal added that Indian behemoth Tata and other domestic companies are working to make India’s semiconductor dream a reality.

It’s unlikely India will manufacture the most cutting-edge chips without the expertise of companies like Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Company (TSMC) and Samsung which build some of the world’s most advanced chips.

“It is a tough job, but we have the talent, we have the skills,” said Goyal. The minister referenced a recent trip to Silicon Valley where he visited several U.S. semiconductor companies and “saw tons of Indians working on the shop floor [and] on management teams,” recounts Goyal.

The minister, spearheading U.S. corporation expansion efforts under Prime Minister Narendra Modi, is confident India will be able to deliver the first chip by 2026-2027.

Apple has already found success in India as it has looked to diversify its supply chain away from China. Goyal says 14% of the world’s iPhones are manufactured in India, with that number “expected to grow.” Apple increased assembly in the country in the last two years while boosting its retail presence to attract new iPhone buyers. And according to Goyal, Indian customers are increasingly opting for the more expensive iPhones.

Apple has also begun manufacturing other products, including iPads, AirPods and Apple Watches in the country. “They’re increasing production,” Goyal added.

Apple’s expansion efforts in India have brought 150,000 jobs across manufacturing facilities in India, making it the biggest employer in the country’s electronics industry, according to India’s Commerce department. An Apple spokesperson was not immediately available to comment.

Apple’s foray into India comes amid ongoing growth challenges in China.

On the recent bout of optimism around China’s economic story and the latest stimulus measures, Goyal suggested that India’s success is not predicated on China’s troubles.

“India… is not dependent on China. We stand on our own competencies, on our capabilities, and we believe we an offering that is far superior to China,” said Goyal.

Goyal met with a few Wall Street investors on Monday including executives from BlackRock, Warburg Pincus and KKR. Goyal said almost all the U.S. private equity players are looking to build and develop data centers across the country.

Google, Microsoft and Nvidia are among the tech companies that are bringing artificial intelligence expertise to India, which Modi’s government has been receptive to. But analysts warn that India must continue tackling larger issues including poor infrastructure, bureaucracy and red tape that have slowed down corporate expansion plans.

Technology

Figure AI sued by whistleblower who warned that startup’s robots could ‘fracture a human skull’

Published

8 hours ago

November 21, 2025

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$Figure AI sued by whistleblower who warned that startup's robots could 'fracture a human skull'$

Startup Figure AI is developing general-purpose humanoid robots.

Figure AI

Figure AI, an Nvidia-backed developer of humanoid robots, was sued by the startup’s former head of product safety who alleged that he was wrongfully terminated after warning top executives that the company’s robots “were powerful enough to fracture a human skull.”

Robert Gruendel, a principal robotic safety engineer, is the plaintiff in the suit filed Friday in a federal court in the Northern District of California. Gruendel’s attorneys describe their client as a whistleblower who was fired in September, days after lodging his “most direct and documented safety complaints.”

The suit lands two months after Figure was valued at $39 billion in a funding round led by Parkway Venture Capital. That’s a 15-fold increase in valuation from early 2024, when the company raised a round from investors including Jeff Bezos, Nvidia, and Microsoft.

In the complaint, Gruendel’s lawyers say the plaintiff warned Figure CEO Brett Adcock and Kyle Edelberg, chief engineer, about the robot’s lethal capabilities, and said one “had already carved a ¼-inch gash into a steel refrigerator door during a malfunction.”

The complaint also says Gruendel warned company leaders not to “downgrade” a “safety road map” that he had been asked to present to two prospective investors who ended up funding the company.

Gruendel worried that a “product safety plan which contributed to their decision to invest” had been “gutted” the same month Figure closed the investment round, a move that “could be interpreted as fraudulent,” the suit says.

The plaintiff’s concerns were “treated as obstacles, not obligations,” and the company cited a “vague ‘change in business direction’ as the pretext” for his termination, according to the suit.

Gruendel is seeking economic, compensatory and punitive damages and demanding a jury trial.

Figure didn’t immediately respond to a request for comment. Nor did attorneys for Gruendel.

The humanoid robot market remains nascent today, with companies like Tesla and Boston Dynamics pursuing futuristic offerings, alongside Figure, while China’s Unitree Robotics is preparing for an IPO. Morgan Stanley said in a report in May that adoption is “likely to accelerate in the 2030s” and could top $5 trillion by 2050.

Read the filing here: