Union Minister Ashwini Vaishnaw said India is working towards producing a smartphone that will be designed, manufactured and branded in the country by 23 October 2028. He made the announcement while speaking at the NDTV World Summit 2026 on 23 October 2026.
What the government says it will achieve
Vaishnaw outlined a two‑year target for establishing domestic smartphone capability that goes beyond assembly to include design and intellectual property. He said the effort follows a government challenge issued to Indian companies roughly three years earlier to develop smartphone design expertise.
The minister listed several indicators of progress the government regards as significant:
- An Indian company has already designed, manufactured and delivered a 5G smartphone to a major US telecom operator.
- Two Indian firms have developed printed circuit board (PCB) designs that serve as the main motherboard for smartphones.
- The policy aim is to retain smartphone intellectual property within India.
Technical challenges and priorities
Vaishnaw emphasised the technical complexity involved in modern smartphone design, noting the need to integrate multiple advanced systems in a compact device. He specifically mentioned components and subsystems that must be balanced during design: antennas, radio‑frequency systems, processors, memory, cameras, displays and power management. The minister said designers must manage trade‑offs between performance, power consumption, weight and internal space.
The announcement frames the government’s objective as not only expanding manufacturing volume in India but also building domestic capability for circuit‑level design and higher value parts of the smartphone value chain.
What this means for industry and users
If realised, the target would mark a shift from India’s current role as a major manufacturing and assembly hub toward producing devices where the core design and intellectual property are Indian. Vaishnaw’s comments also signal active encouragement for companies to invest in system design and critical subsystems rather than only on contract manufacturing.
| Item | Detail |
|---|---|
| Announcement made | NDTV World Summit 2026, 23 October 2026 |
| Target date | 23 October 2028 |
| Noted progress | Indian firm supplied a 5G phone to a US carrier; two firms developed PCB designs |
The minister did not publish a roadmap or list of companies by name in his remarks at the summit. The statement underscores government intent to preserve intellectual property related to smartphone designs within India while encouraging domestic engineering and manufacturing of complex components.
