Chennai-based fabless semiconductor design startup, Mindgrove Technologies, has raised $8 million in Series A funding to support the commercial rollout of its first microcontroller chip, Secure IoT, by mid-2025. The funding round, co-led by Rocketship.vc and Speciale Invest, also saw participation from Mela Ventures, Peak XV Partners, Whiteboard Capital, Nishchay Goel, and Anshul Goel.
This investment marks a near fourfold increase in the company’s valuation compared to its seed round in early 2023. Mindgrove focuses on designing high-performance system-on-chips (SoCs) for both Indian and global markets.
The funds will be directed toward scaling the production and distribution of the Secure IoT chip, team expansion, and enhancing engineering capabilities. The company introduced a prototype of its 28nm Secure IoT chip earlier this year, tailored for smart connected devices such as smartwatches, printers, access control units, and point-of-sale machines.
“With growing demand for high-performance, secure SoCs in India, we are committed to bringing designed-in-India chips to market,” said Shashwath T.R., CEO of Mindgrove Technologies.
Mindgrove is also developing a second RISC-V-based SoC targeting high-performance edge computing and video processing applications, including CCTV cameras, dashcams, automotive ADAS, and smart TVs. This development is supported by the government’s DLI (Design Linked Incentive) scheme and funding from the Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology (MeitY).
The startup has received accolades from its investors. “Mindgrove represents the future of India’s tech industry, delivering innovative, cost-effective semiconductor solutions,” said Sailesh Ramakrishnan, Managing Partner at Rocketship.vc.
Vishesh Rajaram, Managing Partner at Speciale Invest, noted, “Mindgrove’s Secure IoT SoC exemplifies their commitment to innovation and cost-efficiency, positioning them as a key player in India’s and the global semiconductor space.”
Incubated by IITM Pravartak Technologies Foundation and IIT Madras Incubation Cell, Mindgrove had previously raised $2.325 million in seed funding from Peak XV Partners, Speciale Invest, and Whiteboard Capital. With its latest funding round, Mindgrove aims to strengthen its foothold in the semiconductor industry and further India’s position in the global chip design market.
