Washington : After meeting with Prime Minister Narendra Modi during a high-profile roundtable with tech industry leaders, Google CEO Sundar Pichai praised Modi’s commitment to driving India’s digital transformation. Pichai highlighted India’s growing role in the global technology landscape and shared insights into how Google is aligning with Modi’s vision, especially in fields like artificial intelligence (AI) and manufacturing.
Speaking about the meeting, Pichai said, “The PM has been focussed on transforming India. It is Digital India vision. He pushed us to continue making in India, designing in India. We are proud to now make our Pixel phones manufactured in India.”
He also underscored Modi’s emphasis on AI and its potential to improve the lives of Indian citizens. “He is really thinking about how AI can transform India in a way that benefits the people of India,” Pichai said. Modi challenged the tech leaders to consider AI applications in sectors such as healthcare, education, and agriculture.
Pichai went on to explain Modi’s broader vision for the country’s technological infrastructure. “He is also thinking about the infrastructure of India – be it data centres, power, energy and investing to make sure that India can transition.”
The Google CEO expressed pride in the company’s collaborations with India, especially in AI. “We are robustly investing in AI in India and we look forward to doing more. We have set several programs and partnerships,” Pichai added, emphasising Google’s continued support for India’s digital growth.
During the roundtable, Modi encouraged global tech companies to deepen their partnerships with India, urging them to “do more” for the country. “He has always challenged all of us to do more, more for India. Now, he is asking us to do the same with AI,” Pichai stated. He praised Modi’s vision for using AI to benefit the Indian population, adding, “He has a clear vision that it should all be in the service of the people of India.”
The meeting, hosted by the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) in New York, brought together key figures from the tech world, including Adobe CEO Shantanu Narayen, IBM CEO Arvind Krishna, and AMD CEO Lisa Su. The roundtable focused on collaborations in emerging areas like semiconductors, AI, quantum computing, and biotechnology. Modi’s message to the CEOs emphasised India’s potential as a hub for technological innovation and encouraged them to explore investment opportunities in the country’s expanding digital sector.
Addressing the Indian diaspora in New York, Modi spoke about a new kind of AI, which he called the “American-Indian spirit,” reflecting the deepening ties between the two countries. “For the world, AI stands for artificial intelligence, but for me, AI also represents the American-Indian spirit,” Modi remarked, highlighting the contributions of Indian talent in global technology.
Modi is set to attend the “Summit of the Future” at the United Nations General Assembly before returning to India, continuing to advocate for India’s growing role in the global tech and innovation space.
