IIT Hyderabad and semiconductor company Kaynes Semicon have signed a two-year memorandum of understanding to expand student training, research collaboration and industry exposure in semiconductor assembly, testing and packaging. The agreement was signed on Friday at Semicon India 2026 in New Delhi and will be implemented through the Wadhwani Innovation Network Centre of Excellence at IIT Hyderabad.
Under the partnership, students from IIT Hyderabad will be able to pursue internships and projects at Kaynes facilities. Researchers from the institute and the company will also explore joint projects involving semiconductor technologies, with a focus on assembly, testing and packaging.
The agreement includes plans for lectures, workshops and training programmes involving the institute and the company. The two sides will also examine possible curriculum changes based on industry requirements, linking academic teaching more closely with the skills needed in semiconductor manufacturing.
Prof. B.S. Murty, Director of IIT Hyderabad, said the collaboration would connect the institute’s work in materials science, electrical engineering and silicon technologies with semiconductor packaging and manufacturing. The partnership is intended to give students and researchers greater exposure to the movement of semiconductor technology from academic research into industrial applications.
Prof. Mahendrakumar Madhavan, dean of Alumni and Corporate Relations at IIT Hyderabad, said the expansion of India’s semiconductor sector would require both new technologies and trained professionals. “India’s semiconductor ambitions will require sustained collaboration between academia and industry,” he said.
The partnership comes as semiconductor manufacturing and related services require specialised capabilities across research, engineering, packaging, testing and production. The MoU places the institute’s academic and research activities in direct engagement with a company operating in outsourced semiconductor assembly and testing.
Kaynes Semicon is a subsidiary of Kaynes Technology India and operates a semiconductor facility at Sanand in Gujarat. The facility works on outsourced semiconductor assembly and testing, a segment that forms part of the manufacturing chain between chip production and the delivery of usable components for electronics and industrial applications.
Raghu Panicker, CEO of Kaynes Semicon, said the company would work with IIT Hyderabad researchers and students on technologies relevant to semiconductor assembly, testing and packaging. The planned internships, projects, lectures and training programmes will provide the main channels for the two-year collaboration.
The MoU does not specify the number of students or researchers who will participate, the individual research projects to be undertaken, or the timetable for curriculum changes. Those details are expected to be developed through the collaboration between IIT Hyderabad and Kaynes Semicon during the two-year agreement.
