Google bets big on India’s digital future, to invest Rs 75,000 crore over 5-7 years

NEW DELHI: Google chief executive Sundar Pichai on Monday announced plans to invest Rs 75,000 crore in India over the next five to seven years to help accelerate the adoption of digital technologies in the country. India-born Pichai, who held a virtual meeting with Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Monday morning, announced at the annual ‘Google for India’ event via video conference. Announcing the Rs 75,000 crore investment in India over the next 5-7 years through ‘Google for India Digitisation Fund’, Pichai asserted that the move is a reflection of the company’s confidence in the future of the country and its digital economy. Pichai said a whole new generation of technologies are happening in India first, and that people in the country no longer have to wait for technology to come to them.

“There’s no question we are facing a difficult moment today, in India and around the world. The dual challenges to our health and to our economies have forced us to rethink how we work and how we live. But times of challenge can lead to incredible moments of innovation,” Pichai said.

The company is committed to ensure that India not only benefits from the next wave of innovation, but in fact leads it, he said. “Today, I’m excited to announce the Google for India Digitisation Fund. Through this effort, we will invest Rs 75,000 crore or approximately $10 billion, into India over the next 5-7 years. We’ll do this through a mix of equity investments, partnerships, and operational, infrastructure and ecosystem investments,” Pichai said. Investments will focus on four areas key to India’s digitisation, including enabling affordable access and information for every Indian in their own language, be it Hindi, Tamil, Punjabi or any other, he added.

Other focus areas will be building new products and services relevant to India’s unique needs, empowering businesses as they continue or embark on their digital transformation, and leveraging technology and Artificial Intelligence (AI) for social good, in areas such as health, education, and agriculture.

Earlier, the Prime Minister tweeted: “This morning, had an extremely fruitful interaction with @sundarpichai. We spoke on a wide range of subjects, particularly leveraging the power of technology to transform the lives of India’s farmers, youngsters, and entrepreneurs”.

Pichai, who is the chief executive officer of Google’s parent Alphabet Inc, replied: “Thank you for your time, PM @narendramodi - very optimistic about your vision for Digital India and excited to continue our work towards it”.

Addressing the ‘Google for India’ event, Pichai said India’s digital journey is far from complete.