British semiconductor company Graphcore, a subsidiary of SoftBank Group, is set to invest £1 billion over the next decade in India, launching a new AI engineering campus in Bengaluru. The initiative aims to create 500 high-end semiconductor jobs, contributing to Graphcore’s goal of becoming a leading artificial superintelligence platform provider.
Recruitment for the first 100 AI semiconductor engineering roles has already begun. Positions cover silicon logical design, physical design, verification, characterization, and chip bring-up, ensuring India becomes an integral part of the global development team rather than just outsourcing.
“We want this team to take full ownership of products on the roadmap. This is not outsourcing—it’s about building complete products and managing delivery,” said Nigel Toon, cofounder and CEO of Graphcore. He added that while software teams remain concentrated in the UK, the Bengaluru campus will gradually expand capabilities across multiple skill sets.
Engineers in Bengaluru will work on cutting-edge semiconductor products for AI applications globally, targeting sectors like drug discovery, public health, sustainability, and business productivity. Graphcore is currently developing 2nm and 3nm technology cores with custom cells, representing some of the most advanced semiconductor processes in the world.
Toon emphasized the search for “the best of the best” in front-end design, physical design, and complex multi-chip systems to contribute to building the most advanced AI processors. The investment positions India as a strategic hub in Graphcore’s global AI semiconductor ambitions, merging innovation, job creation, and cutting-edge technology development in the country.
