Sona BLW Precision Forgings Ltd (Sona Comstar), a leading global provider of mobility technology solutions, will be showcasing its latest innovations at CES 2025, which is being held from 7 to 10 January in Las Vegas, Nevada.

At Booth No. 7412, the company will showcase its mobility technology solutions that include cutting-edge sensor solutions from its Serbian subsidiary NOVELIC, such as the Short-Range Radar, which is intended for Park Assist, 180-degree obstacle detection, Kick-to-Open functionality and tailgate/liftgate protection, and the In-Cabin Monitoring Radar, which sets new standards for automotive safety and user experience with features like Child Presence Detection, Seat Occupancy Detection, Intrusion Alerts and Proximity Alerts. Additionally, the business will showcase its Electronic Locking Differential Assembly for SUVs, which is designed to offer better traction and vehicle control; its High-Voltage Motor Inverter for Light Vehicle Applications, which improves EV performance and energy efficiency.

Vivek Vikram Singh, MD & Group CEO, Sona Comstar, said, "At Sona Comstar, our vision is to drive the future of mobility through innovation, sustainability and engineering excellence. The technologies we are showcasing at CES 2025 reflect our unwavering commitment to creating transformative, customer-centric solutions that enhance performance, efficiency and safety. Our expanding footprint in North America underscores our dedication to being a trusted partner in shaping a sustainable and smart mobility ecosystem."

The VLSI Society of India (VSI) officially inaugurated the 38th edition of International Conference on VLSI Design & 24th International Conference on Embedded Systems on 6 January 2025 at The Leela Palace, Bengaluru.

With the theme ‘Silicon Meets AI: Sustainable Innovations in Accelerated Computing, Secure Connectivity & Intelligent Mobility’, the inaugural ceremony got off to a great start. The ceremony was addressed by Dr Chris Miller, Professor at Tufts University and author of Chip War: The Fight for the World's Most Critical Technology, who also highlighted the major points concerning the industry in a ‘Chip-Pe-Charcha’ session which was moderated by Dr Satya Gupta, President, VSI. The event highlighted the vital role that VLSI and Embedded Systems play in advancing revolutionary developments in AI/ML, 5G, IoT, quantum computing, and electric vehicles. With over 2,700 registrants, 18 keynote speakers, 32 tutorials, 74 papers, five expert panels, 16 user design sessions, more than 50 exhibits, 13 industry forum sessions, 15 design contest finalists and more than 30 sponsors, the esteemed symposium reaffirmed its status as a premier worldwide event at VLSID 2025.

Dr Satya Gupta, President VLSI Society of India, said, “The VLSID 2025 conference is a remarkable convergence of global talent and innovation. It provides a unique opportunity to address the complex challenges of tomorrow while fostering collaboration across the semiconductor and AI ecosystems. The world is watching India making great tech strides in semiconductors. This conference puts another spotlight on India.”

Patrick Johnson, Senior Corporate Vice President, Microchip Technology and an executive chair of the VLSI Design Conference, said, “The integration of Silicon and AI has unlocked unprecedented opportunities. VLSID 2025 is the ideal platform to explore how these advancements can redefine mobility, connectivity and computing.”

Sandeep Bharathi, Chief Development Officer, Marvell Technology, said, “With the emerging semiconductor ecosystem across Design and Manufacturing, AI and ML are going to be essential to speed up learning and integrating processes to strengthen the ecosystem. AI and ML are not just disrupting the semiconductor design ecosystem – they're redefining its very fabric, empowering innovators to dream bigger and push the boundaries of what's possible. We are glad that we could provide an ideal platform at VLSID 2025 to further explore how these advancements can redefine mobility, connectivity and give rise to a new generation of technological breakthroughs.”

Hitesh Garg, Vice President and India Managing Director, NXP Semiconductors, said, “The semiconductor industry's future growth and innovation rely heavily on a robust talent pipeline and a thriving startup ecosystem. Programmes that facilitate industry-academia exchanges, provide students and young professionals with hands-on training and mentorship that can foster a culture of innovation and entrepreneurship and stay competitive in the global market. VLSID 2025 provides an excellent cross learning opportunity among industry participants, startup ecosystem and academia. It also enables students and researchers to present their ideas to industry veterans and address emerging challenges and capitalise on new opportunities.”

Altair, a leading computational intelligence solutions provider, has signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with the Centre of Excellence in Advanced Automotive Research (CAAR) to drive innovation and collaboration in the automotive industry.

Established under the guidance and support of the Indian Institute of Technology (IIT), Madras, CAAR provides technologies and facilities for the automotive industry. As a premiere institute in addition to nurturing and creating the talent force, it also advises on policy.

The partnership aims to focus on developing innovative solutions to support e-mobility, autonomous systems and sustainable vehicles. They also will work towards bringing products faster to market.

Vishwanath Rao, Country Manager, Altair India, said, “Our collaboration with CAAR and IIT Madras is poised to drive innovation in the automotive sector. This MoU underscores Altair’s commitment to delivering technologies that enable automotive sustainability, efficiency, and progress.”

Thiru Srinivasan, CEO, CAAR, said, “Our partnership with Altair marks a significant step in our mission to speed up the process of taking innovative concepts from academic research towards industry-ready technologies. This partnership will also help further develop Altair’s software tools for use in the rapid development of high-value automotive products.”
 

With factors like exhaust emissions, non-exhaust emissions, battery durability and lifetime requirements (in terms of mileage and lifetime) as the key requirements, vehicles complying with BS 7 emission regulations will see a considerable rise in onboard controllers. 
The commercial vehicles will be particularly subject to a doubling of controllers onboard as the new emission regulations kick in the next two to three years, mentioned a technology chief of an automobile company in India recently. 
The number of controllers will double in a commercial vehicle from 10 to 20, he explained. He drew attention to the move up to Euro 7 emission norms in Europe and stated, “The BS 7 emission norms in India are loosely based on the Euro 7 emission regulations that come into effect in Europe in 2025.”  
The Euro 7 emission regulations in Europe will come into force for passenger vehicles from 1 July 2025. The Euro 7 emission regulations for commercial vehicles will come into force from 1 July 2027. 
The BS 7 emission regulations draft is out, mentioned an auto components industry leader. “The emission regulations, like in Europe, are expected to be enforced in a staggered manner,” he added. 
The government is expected to announce the BS 7 regulations for passenger vehicles and two-wheelers in the middle of next calendar year. These would closely follow the RDE norms that came into force from middle of last calendar year. 
The effect of BS & emission norms is expected to be considerable in terms of price escalation in vehicles. 
 

Visteon Corporation, a leading supplier for automotive cockpit electronics and connected car solutions, has inaugurated its new Global Capability Center (GCC) in Kolkata, India. The facility set to become operational by January 2025 is set to have 300 engineers by end-2026 with plans to scale it up to over 500 engineers in the next two to three years.

The Kolkata GCC will focus on Android-based infotainment, autonomous vehicle solutions, cybersecurity, multimedia & remote projection, cloud technologies. It will exclusive focus on Android-based infotainment and cockpit software development.

With this, the company now has facilities in Chennai, Goa, Bengaluru, Pune, Trivandrum and Coimbatore contributing to its global development capabilities.

Sachin Lawande, President & CEO, Visteon, said, “India has been central to our strategy for over 20 years, with over 2,000 of our people driving automotive innovation. The new Kolkata center strengthens our focus on Android-based automotive solutions and expands our fastest-growing product portfolio. At Visteon we meet the talent where it’s at, and we’re glad to strengthen our team with Kolkata’s engineering expertise and collaborate with the city’s top universities to support the evolving needs of automakers worldwide.”