The Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering at Texas A&M University successfully organized the first Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers (IEEE) Semiconductor Summit. The student-led conference brought together 500 participants, including academic experts, industry leaders and aspiring engineers, for a day of collaboration, innovation, and insight into the future of semiconductor technology.
The summit’s theme, "Empowering Students to Lead the Chip Revolution," highlighted the importance of semiconductors in global technology and encouraged students to learn more about IEEE. With 20 distinguished speakers, panel discussions, and 10 interactive exhibition booths, the event provided a high-impact platform for professional networking, student engagement, and technical exploration.
The summit was entirely organized by a dedicated team in the IEEE Texas A&M chapter, including conference directors Sharon Thomas and Fidel Makatia. It was supported by Steven Muttathil, logistics director, Deeptha Karur, hospitality director, Oliver Jansen, public relations director, Akshat Neralla, IEEE president, Digvijay Alluri, IEEE treasurer, and a strong network of volunteers.
“We believed in the impact this could have — not just for IEEE and Texas A&M, but for the future of engineering students here,” Karur said.
A Vision Realized
Held at the Texas A&M Student Recreation Center, the event attracted major companies such as Texas Instruments, Qualcomm, ARM, Infineon, and Cadence, who hosted engaging exhibitions and brought wafers, prototypes, and the newest technologies to campus to recruit, educate and inspire.
“We were really trying to go beyond a typical career fair,” said Karur. “This was about showing what’s next in semiconductor technology and how students can be part of that.”
From 9:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m., the summit featured a packed agenda of technical talks, keynotes, and a dynamic panel moderated by faculty advisor Dr. Stavros Kalafatis. Keynote speakers included Robert Williamson, senior director of engineering at ARM, and Jason Brown, director of design engineering at Micron Technology.
During breaks, participants could attend the outdoor exhibition, blending industry exposure with educational insight.
“Our intention in organizing this conference was to create a platform,” Karur said. “Especially for underclassmen who might not know where they fit into this world yet. We wanted to help them find that path.”
Faculty and Department Support
Crucial support came from faculty, including Dr. Costas Georgiades, Dr. Suin Yi, and Dr. Jose Silva-Martinez, as well as Dr. Narasimha Reddy, who financially backed the student team and publicly praised the group during a recognition dinner held at the Texas A&M Hotel and Conference Center, commending the initiative as a milestone for the department.
“At the dinner, Dr. Reddy said, ‘they dared to dream, and they got it done’,” said Karur. “That was incredibly heartwarming to hear, and it wouldn’t have been possible without the effort of volunteers behind-the-scenes.”
Volunteers included undergraduate student leads Alan Jaf, Arju Kafle, Roman Venegas, Nafi Baksh, Seth Mayhue, and Annie Li.
The next IEEE TAMU Semiconductor Summit will be led by upcoming conference chairs Arju Kafle and Alan Jaf.