Applied funding arm to build more Indian IC firms

The investment arm of IC tool vendor Applied Materials Inc. has invested in two Indian companies and is considering two additional investments this year.

"The first investment by Applied Ventures LLC completed last year was Tessolve Services Pvt. Ltd, a test and IC packaging services company. The second is an undisclosed company that develops EDA tool software at the foundry level," said Madhusudan Atre, president, Applied Materials India Pvt. Ltd.

The amount invested in each company was not disclosed, but Applied Ventures typically invests from $1 million to $5 million. One of the planned investments would be a new funding round for the EDA software company.

"India is a good place for investment for these kinds of enterprise and these need to increase as the ecosystem is almost wholly comprised of chip design, embedded software or application software venture," Atre said.

He added that Applied India is looking at investments in "nanoscale manufacturing" and manufacturing software for mask-pattern generation, semiconductor etch and inspection systems along with flat-panel displays. "The tool maker is also focusing on investments in solar manufacturing and 'flexible electronics,'" he noted.

Applied employs about 1,500 workers in Bengaluru and Chennai, and has invested in an estimated $20 billion worth of projects for making solar cells and panels.

Launched in 2005, Applied Ventures has so far invested in about 20 companies around the world.

- K.C. Krishnadas
EE Times