Leadership Transition at EPIC Foundation
On Monday, July 27, 2026, EPIC Foundation, the non‑profit co‑founded by HCL co‑founders Arjun Malhotra and Dr Ajai Chowdhry, issued a press release from New Delhi announcing a leadership transition. Mr Arjun Malhotra has assumed the role of Chairperson of the Foundation, while Dr Ajai Chowdhry will continue as Founder.
The Foundation’s mission is to position India as a global leader in electronics hardware product design and manufacturing. The new leadership structure is intended to further the vision of building a sustainable, self‑reliant ecosystem for semiconductors and electronics, which the Foundation views as a key driver of national transformation. Both leaders will remain actively engaged in promoting indigenous innovation, domestic manufacturing, intellectual‑property creation, technology sovereignty, support for Indian startups, improved market access, and collaboration among industry, government, and academia.
In a statement, Dr Ajai Chowdhry praised Mr Malhotra’s lifelong commitment, noting that his career exemplifies the Foundation’s conviction that Indian engineers, entrepreneurs, and institutions can build for the world. He emphasized that the transition is a natural progression rather than a course correction, coinciding with strong policy support for indigenous innovation.
Mr Malhotra’s background includes co‑founding HCL in 1975, where he helped establish confidence in Indian engineering and contributed to the digital economy that now drives India’s global standing, employment generation, exports, and innovation capacity. He highlighted that the next major opportunity for India is to move beyond technology adoption to creating products and solutions that address domestic needs while competing globally. He outlined an “output‑driven” vision for EPIC, focusing on encouraging risk‑taking entrepreneurs, supporting indigenous product development, and accelerating promising innovations from laboratory to market. He also pledged to intensify efforts to build institutions, products, and policy environments that enable Indian engineers and entrepreneurs to solve problems on their own terms.
Mr Malhotra’s contributions have earned him several honors, including the Albert Einstein Technology Medal, the Dataquest Lifetime Achievement Award, recognition as an Eminent Engineering Personality by the Institution of Engineers (India), honorary doctorates from IIT Kharagpur and Punjab Technical University, Life Fellowship and Hall of Fame membership at IIT Kharagpur, and the One World One Family Global Leadership Award.
EPIC Foundation reaffirmed its commitment to enhancing India’s capabilities as a “Product Nation” and to accelerating globally competitive indigenous technology and products across electronics, deep‑tech, innovation, and emerging technologies.
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