Modi-‘STAN’ in US – 5 Key Announcements Awaits India
PM Modi’s incentivizing trip to US has brought realms of hope for the natives earnestly waiting on ‘What’s Next’ – with Facebook paints its Indian users with Digital India background; there’s lot more on the ground as PM Modi is getting an alias name of ‘Santa Claus’ for India .
- Google will soon help India set up base for free Wi-Fi at 500 railway stations while Microsoft will take low-cost broadband technology to some five lakh villages across that country as part of five key announcements made during the meeting the US top tech titans had with Prime Minister Narendra Modi.
- As the who’s who from the tech world gave a ringing endorsement to the ambitious ‘Digital India’ programme, Microsoft CEO Satya Nadella said it will announce cloud computing systems from data centers in India next week, calling it a “big milestone”.
Nadella said Microsoft’s plan is to partner with the Indian Government to bring in low-cost broadband connectivity to 500,000 villages in India.
- Chipmaker Qualcomm announced an India-specific $150 million venture capital fund for startups in the mobile and internet-of-everything (IoE) ecosystem. The fund will be set up by its venture arm, Qualcomm Ventures. Qualcomm also announced a programme to “Design in India.” Executive chairman Paul E Jacobs said that there was more internet traffic on mobile phones in India than in any other country. The company will also set up an innovation lab in Bangalore. “We share Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s vision to transform India into a digitally-empowered society and knowledge economy,” Jacobs said.
- The Prime Minister (in his meeting with Cook) said he would like Apple to start manufacturing in India. He mentioned the huge opportunities India offered,” Ministry of External Affairs Spokesman Vikas Swarup told reporters.
Foxconn, which is Apple’s largest manufacturer, has decided to set up a manufacturing base in India, he noted.