Electronics Era Editorial Team interacts with Pankaj Panjwani, CEO and Founder, KeenSemi, was founded in 2016 with a mission to revolutionize System-on-Chip (SoC) design. Since its inception, the company has established itself as a trusted partner in the semiconductor industry, providing high-performance, tailored designs to clients worldwide.
With offices in Santa Clara, California, and across key Indian tech hubs like Noida, Bangalore, and Chennai, Keenheads serves clients in the US, Europe, and India. The company offers a comprehensive range of services, including Analog Mixed Signal (AMS) design, front-end and back-end design, Design for Testability (DFT), and FPGA design.
1. Can you explore KeenSemi as a company, the inspiration behind it, and its achievements?
We formed Keenheads, now known as KeenSemi, back in 2016 with a focus on providing value-added semiconductor design consultancy and services. As with any new setup, we faced multiple challenges in the early days and gained a closer understanding of our clients’ needs. Semiconductor design, being a niche area of development, requires foresight into trends 5-10 years ahead. Products necessitate a deep understanding of market requirements, not only for today but also for future trends.
2. What are some of the breakthrough innovations in the semiconductor sector that KeenSemi has contributed to in recent times?
Broadly speaking, the semiconductor industry has huge potential for solving future challenges. The new generation of fabrication nodes brings even more capability for semiconductors to turn visions into reality. KeenSemi’ leadership team understands this potential and has consistently delivered technological innovations in communications, high-performance computing servers, IoT, machine learning, and the automotive sector. Our engineers have developed innovative methods to design products faster and better for these markets, utilizing leading-edge fabrication nodes such as 1.8nm, 3nm, and 5nm. We have contributed to the development of products in HBM, UCIe, and DDR, which are defining a new era in System-On-Chip development for large workloads.
3. What are some of the Silicon Design Solutions that KeenSemi offers its customers?
Over the last eight years, we have helped bring ideas to silicon for multiple customers in specialized areas like verification, physical design, and Design for Test (DFT). We provide innovative methodologies and approaches in these areas, helping our customers deliver products on time, with the desired quality and cost efficiency. Our specialized and focused services have enabled more than 15 customers in India, the US, Taiwan, and Europe to realize their semiconductor product visions. These products have become multi-million-dollar revenue generators for our customers. We take pride in the fact that KeenSemi has contributed to and enabled our customers to achieve their SAM and SOM targets.
4. How do you ensure that KeenSemi stays ahead of industry trends and continues to deliver cutting-edge solutions?
I believe semiconductor design requires staying at the forefront, not only by being aware of leading fabrication nodes but also by utilizing novel approaches in methodologies and Electronic Design Automation (EDA) software. Today, it’s impossible to design and develop a competitive semiconductor product without leveraging the best and latest features of EDA software. The advancements in EDA over the last 10 years have transformed how semiconductor products are conceived and designed.
At KeenSemi, we prioritize individual skill development. The leadership team spends significant time with engineers to enhance both technical and non-technical skills at levels needed by our customers. We encourage our team to write white papers and discuss them in the community. This ensures that our team remains motivated to develop new approaches rather than focusing solely on day-to-day operational tasks.
5. What are the biggest challenges the company faces in the current global electronics market, and how are you addressing them?
The global electronics market is increasingly dependent on semiconductors. Just as we find plastic in everything around us, semiconductors are now used in everything from toothbrushes to TVs. The demand for semiconductors is growing exponentially, and almost all advanced countries see the potential for setting up localized manufacturing, design, and consumption of semiconductor products. This is creating a need for specific development tailored to local markets.
KeenSemi is well-positioned in India to harness these tailwinds and provide the necessary skills for indigenous products based on semiconductors. As with any semiconductor company, we sometimes face a shortage of skilled people with a deep understanding of the entire semiconductor product cycle. However, our innovative methodologies and talent management approach enable us to leverage automation and EDA software to meet industry demands. The methods our leads adopt for projects allow us to utilize junior engineers for complex tasks.
6. How has the miniaturization of electronic components and the implementation of AI and various algorithms changed the semiconductor design industry?
AI and its applications have created enormous opportunities for software developers to visualize real-world applications that were considered science fiction just 10 years ago. Companies like Meta, Google, Amazon, and Apple have the capital to expand their frameworks to include AI software stacks for developers worldwide. Few realize that this requires highly efficient System-On-Chip (SOC) semiconductors to handle such workloads. Any semiconductor product needs to meet three primary constraints—Power, Performance, and Area (PPA)—to be successful in the market.
Every new semiconductor product packs more horsepower per square millimeter. Today, even small semiconductors in your mobile device can compute more than a personal computer could just five years ago. Miniaturization in semiconductors is driving the growth and enhancement of human capabilities by delivering immense computing power, wherever you are.
7. Could you highlight any recent projects or partnerships that demonstrate KeenSemi’ impact on advancing electronics technology?
KeenSemi has worked with multiple start-ups in India and the US on advanced concepts in wearable technologies, high-performance computing, automotive, and wired and wireless communication. One notable project is our collaboration with CDAC, India. We are contributing to the development of India’s first ARM Neoverse-based High-Performance Compute Solution called “Aum,” designed and developed by CDAC to meet India’s growing workloads. CDAC has ambitious plans for this indigenously developed System-On-Chip, and KeenSemi is proud to be a part of this project, helping India’s semiconductor development story.
8. What are KeenSemi’ future plans and strategies for expanding its influence in both domestic and international markets?
My vision for KeenSemi involves a multi-pronged approach to capitalize on the demand for semiconductor hardware generated by new AI-based software applications. The leadership team at KeenSemi is excited that we possess the capabilities and skills to meet the industry’s demand and support both large and small customers. Our approach focuses on business development, adding value to our services, and upskilling talent to become more efficient.
1. We plan to expand our business development efforts in the US, Taiwan, Japan, and Europe. These markets are strategic not only because of higher profit margins but also because the nature of projects keeps KeenSemi at the forefront of advanced technology nodes and EDA algorithms. In the next 2-4 years, we also plan to establish local offices in countries where we currently have no presence. This will enable customers to interact with KeenSemi in local time zones and facilitate face-to-face interactions.
2. We will offer more services to existing and potential customers, positioning KeenSemi as a one-stop shop. We also plan to collaborate with IP vendors to cross-market solutions to current and future clients. This will help customers work with a single vendor for all their needs, increasing the value KeenSemi brings while reducing customers’ effort and capital requirements for product development. We are targeting a 2x revenue increase over the next 12 to 18 months.
3. Addressing the talent shortage gap will be a key focus of our growth strategy. With more skilled people, our business development efforts will be able to propose solutions to customers with confidence. We plan to increase our intake of junior engineers and collaborate with external training houses to hire and train skilled professionals.
