Kerala-Based Semicon Startup Netrasemi Raises ₹107 Crore in Series A

Kerala-based semiconductor startup Netrasemi has raised ₹107 crore in a Series A round from Zoho Corporation and Unicorn India Ventures. The funds will accelerate research and development initiatives, expand manufacturing capabilities, enhance marketing efforts to capture larger domestic and global market share, and bring four system-on-chip (SoC) variants with advanced AI and video analytics features into production. The company aims to address the compute platform requirements of original equipment manufacturers (OEMs) for surveillance, industrial robotics, and smart infrastructure products.

The company has successfully completed the development of two SoC products currently in the tapeout stage targeting TSMC's 12nm technology node:

• A2000: A high-performance AI chip capable of high-resolution video analytics

• R1000: An AI microcontroller chip designed for smart IoT sensors

Edge-AI Innovation Rooted in India

Founded in 2020 by Jyothis Indirabhai, Sreejith Varma, and Deepa Geetha, Netrasemi builds domain-specific system-on-chips for optimal computing in smart IoT devices. Their solutions are designed for on-device AI-based analytics, eliminating the need to offload data to the cloud. The company’s architecture features energy-efficient neural processing units (NPUs), proprietary silicon IP, AI development tools, SDKs, and reference platforms.

Over the past year, Netrasemi has developed two Edge-AI chips with advanced video capabilities, initiated work on an AI-powered CCTV camera chip for the Indian market, and signed multiple MOUs with global partners. It has also received interest from several OEMs and secured platform development partnerships.

Backed by Strategic Investors to Drive India’s Deep-Tech Ambitions

Zoho Corporation’s investment reflects its ongoing commitment to India’s deep-tech ecosystem. "Supporting the growth of a strong deep-tech ecosystem in India is a key focus for Zoho," said Shailesh Davey, Co-founder and CEO of Zoho Corporation. "Our interests with Netrasemi also align on the R&D front, especially in areas such as robotics, AI, and edge processing." Zoho has also opened an R&D centre in Kottarakara, Kerala, where it plans to collaborate with Netrasemi on joint innovation initiatives.

Unicorn India Ventures, which had previously invested in Netrasemi, also participated in the Series A round. “Netrasemi has opened up new markets and will be leading the next wave of innovation in the semiconductor industry,” said Anil Joshi, Managing Partner.

Netrasemi plans to double its workforce to 166 engineers and ramp up customer engagement across segments like smart cities, retail, home devices, and industrial applications. It is also advancing development of next-generation chips with enhanced performance.

“In the new age of AI automation and smart devices, domain-specific optimization is a necessity,” said Jyothis Indirabhai, Co-founder & CEO of Netrasemi. “We not only make advanced SoCs but own the IP cores that go inside, enabling cost-effective and power-efficient AI at the edge.”

Backed by Zoho and supported by MeitY, IIM-K, TrEST Research Park, and KSUM, Netrasemi is gearing up for full production and next-gen R&D. The company aims to begin mass production of all three SoC families and initiate R&D for an ultra-high-performance SoC in the next 12–18 months.