Intel to invest $100 m for Indian start-ups

World's largest microprocessor maker Intel Corporation announced that it plans to pump in fresh investments of $ 100 million in India this year

agencyfaqs! News Bureau

New Delhi

World's largest microprocessor maker Intel Corporation announced that it plans to pump in fresh investments of $ 100 million in India this year. This is a 10-fold increase in venture capital investments that the company is making in India compared with the $ 10 million investments it made last year.

"Intel Capital, the venture capital fund of Intel would invest in about 30 Indian infotech companies in hardware, software, services and application areas," said Craig R Barrett, chief executive officer and president of Intel Corporation , who is on a two-day India visit.

"India offers an exiting opportunity to us," he said. ``Intel Capital will pick up equity stakes in companies that bring in exciting new technologies to the world of the Internet,'' he said. The fund would also make larger investments in forging joint ventures in the areas of software and hardware in India.

``The investments such as venture capitalist funding are to generate interest in the Internet in this country. India is well-positioned at a strategic point to become a global leader in the Internet economy. But we need continuous support from the Government,'' he said.

Currently, sales revenues from India contribute about 1 per cent to Intel's total worldwide revenues and about 4 per cent to its Asian revenues. The company is also a 55 per cent growth in its Indian revenues this year as the country is witnessing a significant growth in computing and Internet usage. The company is also expecting. In addition to this the world's largest chip maker is also open to acquisitions and joint venture in India.

"The fund has already invested in 15 companies in the last 18 months," Barrett said. Among the companies Intel invested in the last year in India were Rediff, Network Solutions, Eastern Software, Ritechoice, Bharati, Indus Software and Silicon Automation Systems.

The company would expand its India Development Centre in Bangalore by increase the software professional from the present 50 to over 500 in the next three years. "Intel's recent acquisition of Bangalore-based Thinkit technologies would supplement design capability sourcing from India," he added. The company is also determined to add more and more projects to the India development center.

"The India development center is an integral part of the company's world wide research and development strategy. We will add more and more projects to this center," he said. The Bangalore center now works on areas like development of IT applications for the company's internal usage and program on design on networking silicon.

According to Barrett, another important strategic area for the company in India is education initiatives. On the company's education initiatives, Barrett said that Intel would train about 1,00,000 Indian teachers as part of its worldwide programme to train 4,00,000 teachers on usage of technology as a learning tool.

The objectives of the Intel education programme is to create awareness of the value of computer technology-based education, catalysing effective use of multimedia computers and the Internet and promoting overall interest in science and technology among children.

According to Jason Chen, vice president and general manager, Asia Pacific, the company is expected to play a proactive role in the broadband area in the country with its investment in IN Cable Networks.

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