Hemamali Gorthi: Driving The Next Generation Wireless Soc Systems& Iot Technology Evolution In India Through Innovation
Hemamali Gorthi
Director
In an exclusive interview with CEO Insights, Hemamali shares about his overall professional experience, the challenges he has faced throughout the whole journey, and much more:
Shed some light on your professional background and experiences. What inspired you to take up the technical leadership role at Infineon Technologies?
I started my career 18+ years back with Athena semiconductors, a wireless LAN system design startup, and worked there for one year before the company got acquired by Broadcom Corporation. I was part of Broadcom till 2014, playing various roles in wireless transceiver algorithms, system design, architecture, and productization of low-power WLAN SOC systems for big smartphone customers. For the WLAN SOC systems, I played both technical and management roles leading and driving multiple cross-functional teams and was also responsible for delivering billions of units to top customers, such as Nokia, Apple, Samsung, and Nvidia. During my time at Broadcom, I also proposed various patents. I co-founded a company named TrakRay Innovations, where we built a precise indoor location tracking system and even made multiple working prototypes. During that time, we were looking for funding. In 2017, my startup was recognized by the Government of Karnataka as one of the top 100 tech startup companies in the communication systems space, and we also got awarded with seed funding. After that, we approached multiple
companies for next round of investment/ collaboration and finally got acquired by NXP India. From 2019 to 2021, I worked as Technical Director at NXP both as an individual contributor as well as driving the UWB technology for Mobile/IoT market segments. The same system/IP was demonstrated as part of CES-2020 Las Vegas. One patent filed during this time. Besides my technical involvement I was also holding key membership as part of NXP patent review committee and startup evaluation board. Six months back,I joined Infineon Technologies, previously known as Cypress semiconductors, as Technical Director, where I am presently driving the next generation wireless LAN systems development for the evolving IoT market segments.
How would you define Infineon Technologies as an organization and its position in the market?
Infineon is into a diverse product &service portfolio. While it’s mostly into IoT, it also offers services and products in different verticals,such as automotive, security, wireless sensor systems, Bluetooth, smartphone/ automotive related products, automotive radarand communication systems and so on. So it has a large footprint in most of the emerging technologies. You have to customize the solution for different market requirements, for example, while some of the requirements are for battery-operated products, we also customize our solutions for wall powered product markets. As diverse requirements will alwaysbe there from the customers'side there is a scope for enhancing the market outlook, understanding the customer needs, and designing new technology products for the next generation of markets.
Reflect on some of the major challenges you have experienced in your journey so far. How did you overcome them and what did you learn from them?
The major challenges that I have faced are as part of the startup that I co-founded after my Broadcom tenure. During that time, I wanted to do something new in wireless communication space while being exposed to the tech startup ecosystem. As usual there were many challenges starting from funding to the partnerships and hiring the right candidates. Compared to App based companies, there were also lesser recognition and investment options in the wireless/ semiconductor product space in India during the 2017-2019 time frame. We had to really come up with an innovative product/service strategy and proof concepts to draw investors’ attention. Even though we have
Every day, we have to reinvent ourselves and give our 100 percent, and that is something that excites and drives me
How would you define Infineon Technologies as an organization and its position in the market?
Infineon is into a diverse product &service portfolio. While it’s mostly into IoT, it also offers services and products in different verticals,such as automotive, security, wireless sensor systems, Bluetooth, smartphone/ automotive related products, automotive radarand communication systems and so on. So it has a large footprint in most of the emerging technologies. You have to customize the solution for different market requirements, for example, while some of the requirements are for battery-operated products, we also customize our solutions for wall powered product markets. As diverse requirements will alwaysbe there from the customers'side there is a scope for enhancing the market outlook, understanding the customer needs, and designing new technology products for the next generation of markets.
Reflect on some of the major challenges you have experienced in your journey so far. How did you overcome them and what did you learn from them?
The major challenges that I have faced are as part of the startup that I co-founded after my Broadcom tenure. During that time, I wanted to do something new in wireless communication space while being exposed to the tech startup ecosystem. As usual there were many challenges starting from funding to the partnerships and hiring the right candidates. Compared to App based companies, there were also lesser recognition and investment options in the wireless/ semiconductor product space in India during the 2017-2019 time frame. We had to really come up with an innovative product/service strategy and proof concepts to draw investors’ attention. Even though we have
envisioned potential market opportunities with our micro-location tracking products/ services at least 3-4 years ahead of time but due to lack of Indian investor vision/ ecosystem support not got expected traction!
So, we struggled a lot while traveling to the USA Bay Area and finding investors. We developed the RTLS IP, software, and algorithms from the solution side, and had to figure out a strategic partner from the SOC side, so that we can create both products/ services. Identifying the right tech. investors and the cost-effectiveness of the solution were also huge challenges there.
End of the day it was fun and we had a roller coaster ride but gotlot of exposure from it and finally we were able to exit gracefully after it got acquihired by NXP.
What has been the success mantra that constantly helps you arrive at positive outcomes? Going forward, what are the goals that you wish to invest in and how do you plan to take them further?
I always believe in giving my best and making things happen irrespective of the situations. In a startup, you face challenges every day. There will be resource issues or funding issues along with deep technical challenges that you need to take care on daily basis. You have to put lot of efforts while coming up with smart approaches and defining next phase of the company. Being a co-founder and technical leader, I need to figure out all these aspects while looking for newer market opportunities, which also requires a lot of dedication and focus. Every day, we have to reinvent ourselves and give our 100 percent and that is something excites and drives me.
Currently, I'm in a different phase of life. Roughly 3 years back, I restarted my corporate journey and would like to continue for some more time. Infineon is a great company that is giving me new opportunities in terms of technical contribution and the continuous evolution of technology and standards, especially in IoT space along with technically driving large team size. I want to explore and execute these challenges successfully while consistently growing on the technical/ management ladder.
Hemamali Gorthi, Director
A Seasoned Professional With More Than 18 Years Of Experience In Wireless Systems & The Semiconductor Space, Hemamali Gorthi Started His Career With A Wlan Soc Design Startup Called Athena Semiconductors, Later Acquired By Broadcom. After 10 Years, He Started A Company Called Trakray That Focused On Developing Micro-Localization (Rtls) Systems For Different Iot Market Spaces And Was Later AcquiHired By Nxp Semiconductors. Currently, He Is Working As The Technical Director At Infineon Technologies, Continuously Enhancing, Innovating, And Driving New Wireless Iot Technologies At The Firm.
So, we struggled a lot while traveling to the USA Bay Area and finding investors. We developed the RTLS IP, software, and algorithms from the solution side, and had to figure out a strategic partner from the SOC side, so that we can create both products/ services. Identifying the right tech. investors and the cost-effectiveness of the solution were also huge challenges there.
End of the day it was fun and we had a roller coaster ride but gotlot of exposure from it and finally we were able to exit gracefully after it got acquihired by NXP.
What has been the success mantra that constantly helps you arrive at positive outcomes? Going forward, what are the goals that you wish to invest in and how do you plan to take them further?
I always believe in giving my best and making things happen irrespective of the situations. In a startup, you face challenges every day. There will be resource issues or funding issues along with deep technical challenges that you need to take care on daily basis. You have to put lot of efforts while coming up with smart approaches and defining next phase of the company. Being a co-founder and technical leader, I need to figure out all these aspects while looking for newer market opportunities, which also requires a lot of dedication and focus. Every day, we have to reinvent ourselves and give our 100 percent and that is something excites and drives me.
Currently, I'm in a different phase of life. Roughly 3 years back, I restarted my corporate journey and would like to continue for some more time. Infineon is a great company that is giving me new opportunities in terms of technical contribution and the continuous evolution of technology and standards, especially in IoT space along with technically driving large team size. I want to explore and execute these challenges successfully while consistently growing on the technical/ management ladder.
Hemamali Gorthi, Director
A Seasoned Professional With More Than 18 Years Of Experience In Wireless Systems & The Semiconductor Space, Hemamali Gorthi Started His Career With A Wlan Soc Design Startup Called Athena Semiconductors, Later Acquired By Broadcom. After 10 Years, He Started A Company Called Trakray That Focused On Developing Micro-Localization (Rtls) Systems For Different Iot Market Spaces And Was Later AcquiHired By Nxp Semiconductors. Currently, He Is Working As The Technical Director At Infineon Technologies, Continuously Enhancing, Innovating, And Driving New Wireless Iot Technologies At The Firm.