Arm, the British semiconductor design firm, is expanding its presence in Bangalore by acquiring a new facility to establish a second office in the city. Arm’s Bangalore office is currently its second-largest globally, employing around 2,000 professionals.
Peter Stephens, Arm’s Director of Government Partnerships, announced this during the CII International Conference on Artificial Intelligence in New Delhi. He emphasized the company’s commitment to leveraging Bangalore’s rich talent pool and fostering innovation in the semiconductor sector.
“I’m especially interested in skills—India and the UK are both talent hubs in electrical engineering for semiconductor design—and how we can support those partnerships in new research,” said Peter Stephens.
Stephens, who also chairs the UK-India Tech Forum—a joint initiative of industry bodies Nasscom and techUK—led the delegation to Delhi and Mumbai.
Arm Expands in Bangalore Amid Broader Strategic Shift
Arm Holdings, traditionally known for licensing its chip architecture to other manufacturers, is reportedly undergoing a significant strategic transformation by developing its own Arm-branded chips for data centers.
This initiative involves recruiting top talent from major tech companies, with plans to introduce the new chip by this summer. Notably, Meta Platforms has reportedly agreed to be the first customer for this new chip, and there is speculation that Arm may acquire private chip designer Ampere to strengthen this effort.
This move signifies a departure from Arm’s traditional licensing model, where the company charged upfront fees and collected royalties from chipmakers using its architecture. SoftBank, which owns approximately 90% of Arm Holdings, exerts significant influence over the company’s strategic direction.