From hybrid mesh networking to AI-enabled edge devices, an Indian IoT startup is developing home-grown solutions to improve connectivity, strengthen privacy and support the country’s smart manufacturing ambitions. How?
Inspired by India’s growing ‘Make in India’ initiative and the government’s strong push for domestic manufacturing, Dr Sanjay Ahuja founded Cion, a design house focused on developing meaningful Internet of Things (IoT) solutions for India. The company develops technology from the ground up, including IoT modules, power supplies and complete white-label products, with most of the development carried out in-house. The name ‘Cion’ reflects its philosophy of grafting, combining technologies and reusable components to create white-label platforms that enable customers to build products without starting from scratch.
Rather than offering generic ‘black-box’ IoT solutions, the company focuses on customisation and addressing India-specific challenges. “We are solving India-specific challenges rather than offering generic ‘black box’ IoT solutions,” says Dr Ahuja. One of its key innovations is a proprietary hybrid mesh architecture designed to improve connectivity in congested wireless networks, industrial environments and shop-floor deployments. It is also developing artificial intelligence (AI)-driven capabilities such as offline voice recognition to deliver smarter and more reliable IoT solutions for the domestic market.
Cion is integrating next-generation technologies including built-in neural processing units (NPUs) for AI processing, Wi-Fi 6, Bluetooth 5.4, Ethernet, Zigbee, Thread and Controller Area Network (CAN) bus integration. Highlighting one of the company’s recent innovations, Dr Ahuja says, “In a recent co-design project for a smart home client, we implemented the Beken BK7238 chipset in the project and achieved nearly 30% improvement in range and 50% less time for device provisioning through our proprietary hybrid mesh technology. This reflects our approach of not just integrating components but architecting complete solutions tailored to India-specific challenges, particularly in network connectivity.”
The company is also addressing growing concerns around IoT privacy, including what data is sent to the cloud, how it is used and the risks associated with service providers located outside India. “To address this, we have developed a hybrid model with a custom mesh-based system that enables direct device-to-device communication, allowing IoT devices to be controlled within a local network without internet access or a dedicated gateway, reducing dependence on cloud connectivity,” says Dr Ahuja.
Discussing the challenges of integrating AI with hardware devices, he explains, “The main challenge is processing power, especially for new AI-enabled products such as AI glasses, AI toys, and smart home automation devices. While earlier IoT devices were not AI-driven, newer designs require on-device intelligence for functions like facial recognition and edge-based use cases. We address this using chipset support such as Beken BK7259, which includes a built-in NPU to handle AI workloads on the edge. Along with LLM integration, this enables us to develop AI systems across applications such as toys, robotics, and wearable devices like AI glasses.”
On the manufacturing front, the company follows a hybrid model to balance agility, scalability and supply chain requirements. Design and research and development (R&D) activities are carried out entirely in-house in India, while printed circuit board assembly (PCBA) and production are outsourced to manufacturing partners in Delhi and China. Indian partners enable faster turnaround and greater customisation, while overseas partners support higher-volume production. The company also plans to establish a manufacturing facility in Bengaluru.
Cion has three dedicated teams covering mobile applications, backend cloud development and firmware. Most of its engineers specialise in firmware but work as full-stack engineers, handling everything from system schematics and printed circuit board (PCB) design to firmware development. This structure enables engineers to work independently across multiple layers of product development.
The startup has signed memorandums of understanding (MoUs) with Kurukshetra University and Delhi Technological University to gain access to research facilities and patent-related work. “We also have collaboration with universities such as Sharda University as an implementation partner for applied research and innovation projects,” adds Dr Ahuja.
The company also works closely with several silicon partners, including Beken for Wi-Fi and Bluetooth chipsets, Sonix for audio chips, Fingerprint Cards AB for fingerprint sensors, JonDeTech for thermopile sensors and Holtek for electric vehicle (EV) charger-related chips. Its products are designed around these technologies to meet specific application requirements. “Our focus is on expanding collaborations with silicon manufacturers, as partnership models are central to our approach as a startup. While we may consider additional partners in the future for scalability, our primary engagement remains with silicon chip manufacturers,” says Dr Ahuja.
As a startup, the company’s immediate challenge is building complete in-house capabilities. To address this, it is collaborating with academic institutions to train engineers in the skills required for product development and manufacturing. The next milestone is scaling production, where the primary challenge is sourcing manufacturing equipment within India. Cion is therefore working with global suppliers to procure production machinery and plans to begin manufacturing soon.
Speaking about funding, Dr Sanjay Ahuja says, “Being on the advisory board for the startup incubation centre at Kurukshetra University, where funding is provided to other startups, we are not in favour of taking external funding for ourselves. We are a bootstrapped company and do not require funding, and we prefer that available funding be used by other needy startups. We have been profitable from day one and do not need external financial support.”
The company is currently establishing a manufacturing facility in Bengaluru and investing in production equipment. The facility is expected to become operational within three to six months. Looking ahead, Cion aims to expand its AI-enabled IoT portfolio, strengthen its manufacturing capabilities, and develop hybrid and offline intelligent systems.
