DLI Scheme-Backed Chip Design Startups Continue to Attract Interest from Leading Investors

• Design Linked Incentive (DLI) Scheme is MeitY's flagship instrument to nurture an indigenous semiconductor/chip design ecosystem of startups, MSMEs and domestic firms.
• Implemented through C-DAC as nodal agency; offers fiscal support + access to EDA tools / IP cores across a 5-year window.
• UPSC relevance: intersects GS-III (S&T, indigenisation, industrial policy), economy (FDI, VC inflows), and strategic autonomy (chip sovereignty under India Semiconductor Mission).