"The balance between sub-6 GHz and mmWave is crucial for India"

TS Shankar, Sales Director at Analog Devices India (ADI),brings over two decades of experience in the semiconductor and electronics industry, with a proven track record of driving technology adoption across automotive, industrial, communications, and energy segments.

- 

An alumnus of IIM Bangalore, he has been instrumental in advancing the uptake of transformative technologies, including 5G, predictive maintenance, and industrial automation—core pillars of India's digital infrastructure journey.

In this exclusive interaction with Pratima Harigunani, he takes us through the electrifying wave of innovation that is rewiring the telco landscape—from mmWave and 6G testing to satellite communications and regenerative payloads. He shares insights into semiconductor breakthroughs involving GaAs, SiGe, and CMOS; the promise of on-chip beamforming; and how quantum-enhanced designs are set to reshape signal fidelity, performance, and power consumption across future networks.

What have been the key highlights of ADI’s development efforts and portfolio expansion in 2024, particularly in 5G, Open RAN, Make-in-India semiconductors, and Al hardware?

ADI is synonymous with innovation, and our commitment to pushing the boundaries of technology remains strong. Our solutions have been pivotal in enabling the first small cells and powering massive MIMO systems. These advancements are making network architectures more open, flexible, and scalable, driving multi-vendor interoperability and enabling faster innovation cycles.

At ADI, we are deeply committed to fostering a future where semiconductor innovation is homegrown and globally competitive. In alignment with India's vision of becoming a semiconductor powerhouse, in September 2024, ADI announced a strategic partnership with the Tata Group to enhance strategic and business cooperation, explore opportunities for semiconductor manufacturing in India, and use ADI's products in Tata applications like electric vehicles and network infrastructure. The companies also agree to have strategic roadmap alignment discussions. Tata Electronics and ADI intend to explore opportunities to manufacture ADI's products in Tata Electronics’ fab in Gujarat and OSAT in Assam.