'Inevitable India' rings especially true in technology sphere in 2024

In the early 2000s, India unveiled the globally lauded tourism campaign - ‘Incredible India’. Fast-forward to the present. Harvard Business School posed a compelling question: If India were to initiate another global campaign today, what should encapsulate its essence?

Its recommendation, ‘Inevitable India,’ carries a profound resonance with the contemporary global landscape and geopolitical dynamics.

From governments across North America. Europe and the Global South to global CEOS worldwide, the name 'India' is at the forefront of discussions on alliances and strategic partnerships. In a world where countries and organisations are strategically mapping their future trajectories, India emerges not just as a choice, but as an inevitability, a pivotal player in the unfolding narrative of our shared global destiny.

Goldman Sachs anticipates that India will become the world's second-largest economy by 2075. Martin Wolf of the Financial Times projects that by 2050, India's purchasing power will eclipse that of the US by a staggering 30%, further contributing to the aura of inevitability that is increasingly becoming synonymous with the India brand.

Viewed through the lens of technology, the idea of" Inevitable India becomes not just an obvious choice, but a compelling one. My belief is not driven solely by national pride, though that sentiment is undeniably strong. Instead, it stems from an understanding of pivotal transitions that are reshaping the global landscape and India's unique position in each of these transformations.

Let's first talk about the all-important digital transition, a paradigm shift that goes beyond reshaping nations and industries it's a complete rewriting of the rules of competition. India's remarkable journey started with our quest to provide a unique national ID to every single citizen in the country: Aadhaar. With digital IDS now in the hands of almost 1.4 billion people, who use it daily for around 80 million transactions, India has established a formidable foundation for a genuinely inclusive digital economy.

At the core of this transformative journey is the India Stack, a groundbreaking amalgamation of digital identities, interoperable protocols for digital payments and a consent-based data layer. enabling secure data sharing based on user choice.

The India Stack has evolved into the bedrock of India's digital public infrastructure DPI), which powers a multitude of services from financial transactions to nationwide vaccine distribution. Based on the design principles of inclusion. security and ecosystem-driven development. India's DPI network has laid the groundwork for economic growth where no one is left behind. Our mantra of innovating for scale at the grassroots level and then moving up, as opposed to the Western norm of top-heavy innovation that trickles down, positions India as one of the few countries realizing the vision of a truly inclusive and human-centric digital economy. Moreover, India stands alone in achieving this at the unprecedented scale we've demonstrated.

The driving force behind this success? A potent blend of talent, technological prowess and a can-do mindset within the dynamic Indian startup ecosystem that seized the opportunity to translate that vision into reality.

India's digital transformation stands not only as the largest and most intricate case study of change that has had substantial impact, but also serves asa shining example of a win-win publicprivate partnership in action.