Tech5: Tata, India Semicon Mission sign historic agreement, Apple now commands double-digit India market share and more

Forbes India's daily tech news bulletin with five headlines that caught our attention

By Harichandan Arakali Forbes India Staff

Published: Mar 6, 2025 12:29:20 PM IST

Updated: Mar 6, 2025 12:36:16 PM IST

Apple CEO Tim Cook along with Senior Vice-president of retail Deirdre O'Brien,(L), during inauguration of "Apple Store", first outlet opened in India, at Bandra-Kurla Complex on April 18, 2023 in Mumbai, India. Image: Anshuman Poyrekar/Hindustan Times via Getty Images

Google launches ‘AI Mode’ in search for One users

Google has launched an AI Mode feature in its Search product that taps the power of its Gemini 2.0 AI models to expand what its AI Overviews can do with “more advanced reasoning, thinking and multimodal capabilities”, Robby Stein, VP of product, Google Search, said in a post on March 5.

“You can get help with even your toughest questions. You can ask anything on your mind and get a helpful AI-powered response with the ability to go further with follow-up questions and helpful web links,” Stein writes.

The feature is currently available by-invitation to Google One AI Premium subscribers. Startup rivals such as Perplexity have already been offering such features for free, while requiring a free sign up and paid subscriptions for access to more advanced features that use AI models from OpenAI, Anthropic and others.

Apple emerges strong even as India’s smartphone market falls in January

Apple emerged as a strong performer in India in January even as the overall smartphone market fell versus the year-ago period. The iPhone maker has been among the top five brands in India by market share for five months in a row, analysts from market researcher IDC wrote in a post on March 5.

“India’s smartphone market faces a slowdown as shipments drop 9.7 percent YoY in January 2025,” IDC analysts wrote in their post. Some 11.1 million smartphones were shipped in India in January. Despite new premium and mid-range launches, weak consumer demand and surplus inventory from late 2024 led to a market contraction, according to them.

Apple improved its India market share from 9.2 percent in January 2024 to 11.4 percent in January 2025, according to IDC.

Tata Group, India Semicon Mission sign historic Fiscal Support Agreement for Dholera fab

India Semiconductor Mission, Tata Electronics Private Limited, and Tata Semiconductor Manufacturing Private Limited signed a Fiscal Support Agreement for India's first commercial semiconductor fab in Dholera, Gujarat, according to a press release from the ministry of electronics and IT on March 5.

Tata Electronics’ semiconductor fab in Dholera was announced in February 2024, with a total investment of about Rs91,000 crore with a capacity of 50,000 wafer-starts per month (WSPM). The Government of India, through the India Semiconductor Mission, has committed 50 percent fiscal support on a pari-passu basis for eligible project costs, according to the press release.

Tata Group is partnering Taiwan's Powerchip Semiconductor Manufacturing Corporation for this project as the technology provider. Some 20,000 jobs are expected to be created from it.

Government of India set to approve more semicon proposals

Government of India is preparing to soon approve another set of semiconductor manufacturing projects under the India Semiconductor Mission (ISM), the Economic Times reports, citing officials. Among the projects likely to be approved is a joint venture between HCL Group and Taiwan’s Foxconn International, one of the world’s biggest contract manufacturers, for an outsourced assembly and testing facility in Noida, according to the Economic Times.

Much of the Rs76,000 crore outlay under ‘ISM 1.0’ has been spent and preparation is on to launch ISM 2.0, according to the report. A second proposal likely to be approved soon is from Tarq Semiconductors, part of the Hiranandani Group, for a fabrication unit, also in Noida, reportedly with an investment of Rs27,000 crore.

Beams, Mitsubishi, BNP back $70 million funding at InsuranceDekho

Beams Fintech Fund, a growth-stage private equity fund focussed on the fintech and financial services sector, has announced a follow-on investment in its portfolio company, InsuranceDekho, as part of a $70 million funding round, according to a press release.

The round was co-led by Beams Fintech Fund, Japan’s Mitsubishi UFJ Financial Group and insurer BNP Paribas Cardif through its insurtech fund managed by European investment major Eurazeo.

Founded in 2017 by Ankit Agrawal, Gurugram-based InsuranceDekho has emerged as a leading tech-led insurance distribution platform to simplify buying, selling, and claims process. To date, InsuranceDekho has served over 10.2 million customers nationwide, with 21 new policies issued every minute on its platform, according to the press release.

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