World's leading chip maker Intel Corporation has announced that it will invest $178 million to expand its R&D presence and build a new state-of-the-art design house in Bengaluru. Intel India plays a very strategic role in Intel’s growth, with significant contributions to Intel’s technology and product leadership,” said Nivruti Rai, Intel India general manager, vice president of Data Center Group.“We are excited about expanding our best-in-class R&D infrastructure in India that will enable us to continue our momentum in doing cutting-edge innovation and design work from India. We look forward to working with the vibrant ecosystem in India and contribute to the country’s innovation journey.” Rai added.This proposed facility will be located at Intel’s 44-acre campus on Sarjapur Ring Road in Bengaluru and will be used for chip design and verification purposes. The additional capacity will also help Intel India consolidate its R&D operations to a large extent at the SRR campus, the company said in a statement.“Karnataka has always been in the forefront when it comes to the IT industry, being the centre of investment, our Invest Karnataka initiative is proving its worth with such beneficial investments in the recent years. Such investments will bring tremendous job opportunities and strengthen the IT sector in the country,” said Karnataka chief minister Siddaramaiah.“Bengaluru has the right potential required for growth in the IT industries and such an investment will propel the state and in turn move the country forward in achieving greater heights. This is one of the many investment agendas that we have planned for the state. I’m confident that Intel’s investments will encourage innovation and bring in more opportunities” said Priyank Kharge, Minister of Information Technology & Biotechnology, Government of Karnataka.Intel India is Intel’s largest design center outside the United States and is engaged in cutting-edge engineering work such as chip or system-on-chip design, graphics, software and platform for the cloud, devices and IoT markets involving advanced technology areas such as artificial intelligence, virtual reality and 5G.