STMicro Unveils Its First Designed-In-India ChipSTMicro Unveils Its First Designed-In-India Chip

STMicroelectronics launched its first wholly designed-in-India chip this week.

The semiconductor manufacturer took the new chip from design to production completely in India, according to an STMicro spokeswoman. The new chip is a set-top box chip called STi5107 MPEG.

STMicro also announced that it will invest as much as $25 million in India by the end of 2007. Company execs also are looking to increase its head count in India by 300 to 400 per year. That means by the end of 2007, the company will have 2,000 workers at the center in Greater Noida, which has a capacity of 3,000.

"We are able to offer unrivalled support to our Indian customers because our Greater Noida R&D center, which has grown from four people in 1987 to over 1,700 today, has been closely involved in developing so many of our important products and platforms," said Vivek Sharma, a VP at STMicro, in a written statement.

STMicro unveiled the new chip and its plans for doing more work in India during "ST Day in India" in New Delhi on Friday. The Franco-Italian company also produces chips in France, Italy, China, and Phoenix, Ariz.