Niche Skills Drive 48% of Job Openings in India's Semiconductor Design GCCs: Report Companies are looking to hire niche talent over volume hiring in FY26. And there is a rising demand for digital design, verification, and GenAI-linked roles

Semiconductor design global capability centres (GCCs) in India are revisiting their hiring strategies leaning towards niche, high-value roles rather than high-volume recruitment.

As per a recent report by talent firm Careernet, open positions across the top 50 semiconductor design GCCs dropped 22 per cent to 2,874 professionals in Q1 FY26 from an average of 3,684 professionals in the same period last year.

The report, 'India's Semiconductor Design GCC Talent Ecosystem', tracks new job postings from India's top 50 semiconductor design GCCs to highlight key hiring and talent trends. The broader scope now spans 79 semiconductor design GCCs in India, up from 70 in 2024, marking a growth of nearly 13 per cent in a year. The in-depth analysis focuses on active roles in the top 50 during Q1 FY25 and Q1 FY26.

Semiconductors are the backbone of modern technology, powering critical systems in healthcare, transport, defence, and space. However, the industry is facing a lack of skilled workforce indicating a high need of upskilling the talent. However, companies are increasingly prioritising critical functions that directly contribute to innovation and product development. The analysis shows that overall hiring has contracted across the sector, with large organisations driving much of the slowdown. Smaller firms, in contrast, continue to show short bursts of hiring, although these are often followed by sharp decline.

India's semiconductor ecosystem is creating strong job momentum, with over 2,800 openings reported in Q1 FY26 across design-focused GCCs.

Hiring demand is led by core VLSI skills (48 per cent), followed by system & application software (35 per cent) and business operations/IT support (17 per cent) roles. Within this, digital design (15 per cent), verification (10 per cent), and system software (10 per cent) roles emerged as top focus areas, with steady demand for physical design, analogue, embedded systems, and firmware.

"The semiconductor industry is at the heart of global growth, yet the supply chain remains fragile due to its concentration in limited geographies. India is stepping up to fill this gap, not just as a manufacturing hub but as a centre for innovation and design. With strong government initiatives like the India Semiconductor Mission, a rich base of MSMEs, and world-class talent in AI, cloud, and R&D, India is poised to play a leading role across equipment, materials, and services," said Neelabh Shukla, Chief Business Officer of Careernet.

"While overall hiring volumes are moderating, the demand for niche, innovation-led skill sets is accelerating, reflecting a decisive shift from quantity to quality. This transformation positions India as a vital pillar in the trillion-dollar global semiconductor market by 2030," Shukla added.

The report highlights that the hiring is shifting from high-volume to specialised roles, with demand centred on digital design engineers, verification specialists, and system software developers, while gradually opening opportunities in areas such as AI/ML model training, validation, and hardware-software integration. Leadership and non-core support hiring, meanwhile, remains muted, highlighting the pivot toward technical depth.

The US continue to be the largest driver of semiconductor GCCs in India with 70 per cent of India's semiconductor design GCCs catering to the Americas. Nearly two-thirds of these GCCs are concentrated in Bengaluru and Hyderabad.