'Similar to the case of the digital payment system where the government created a public platform and others joined in, we are exploring a similar structure to create a PPP platform where the compute required for AI could be accessed by the small player.'
In an otherwise agriculture- and public health-focused Union Budget 2018-19, artificial intelligence, machine learning, blockchain technology, internet of things -- jargons that found little or no mention in the previous Budgets -- managed to make their presence felt.
'The digital trust level has drastically gone up due to Covid, not only in tier-I and II cities, but also in tier-III, IV and V geographies,'
Technology is rapidly reshaping industries that have long been rooted in tradition, driving a wave of innovation that is transforming everything from finance, banking, steel to manufacturing.
'India missed the software products revolution (and now is in danger of missing the platform revolution), complacent that we are the software experts of the world based on IT services prowess,' points out Rajeev Srinivasan.
Leyland expects the digital drive to help tap its in-house strength as well as segments such as passenger cars and two-wheelers.
'We also realised that locking customers to our Cloud was not fair to them.'
Nearly 665 million Indians or 45 per cent of the rural population did not have access to the internet as of 2023. Difficulty in understanding internet procedures, insufficient awareness of its benefits, and a lack of interest have emerged as the top reasons for a gap in internet penetration in rural India, according to a joint report by the Internet and Mobile Association of India (IAMAI) and Kantar. "The proficiency of English in rural India is very low. While we have content in Hindi, the internet is English-heavy.
Apart from the Google team led by AI scientist Manish Gupta, the company will also partner with the research community across the country to focus on tackling challenges in fields like healthcare, agriculture, and education.
'That way you're not hostage just to US sort of exports to India.'
Employers are now looking to hire professionals who can demonstrate their skills rather than reel off a catalogue of undirected theoretical qualifications.
User protection and a proposal for a licensing framework for companies seeking to operate in the cryptocurrency area will be part of an upcoming consultation paper on the sector, said a senior industry executive. Even as specific regulations around crypto are yet to take shape, companies are setting up baseline user protection processes, including a redressal mechanism, fraud detection, regular filing of suspicious transaction reports (STRs), among others.
An initiative of Nandan Nilekani's EkStep Foundation, people+ai on Tuesday unveiled its vision for the future of Artificial Intelligence (AI) in India, dubbed 'Adbhut India' (Amazing India). It aims to harness AI as a powerful tool to enhance the lives of all Indians. The event marked the rollout of several initiatives by people+ai that are focused on discovering, demonstrating, and disseminating population-scale AI use cases for India.
Last year, the software giant launched a cloud adoption programme for SMBs.
India SME Forum, an organisation for small and medium businesses, has called for creating a dedicated fund of Rs 5000 crore for the export capacity development, promotion, and marketing of Micro, Small & Medium Enterprises (MSMEs) in its Budget recommendation. The forum for MSMEs with over 98,000 members said that to enhance India's global competitiveness and increase its market share in global exports, it was "crucial to increase the number of active exporters and enable at least 3-4 lakh first-time micro, small, and medium exporters while supporting them in promoting Indian products globally."
'Today, let us reaffirm our commitment to strive to realise Gandhiji's dreams. His watchwords, truth and nonviolence, will continue to remain relevant for the whole world. He also taught us that rights and duties are but the two sides of the coin - indeed, the true source of rights is duty. Today we recall his lessons in compassion too - compassion not only for our human neighbours but also for our other neighbours, namely, flora and fauna, rivers and mountains.'
Debit card payments remained sluggish due to the surge in digital transactions after the pandemic, and the Unified Payments Interface (UPI) has emerged as the most popular mode of money transfer, particularly for small value transactions, according to RBI data. In July 2020, the total debit card spends stood at Rs 2.81 trillion, as compared to Rs 3.15 trillion in July 2023, reflecting a growth of 11.96 per cent. UPI spends have seen a whopping growth of 428 per cent, zooming from Rs 2.90 trillion to Rs 15.33 trillion during the same period, the data revealed.
Prime Minister Modi also made a veiled reference to China, saying the global order is based on the respect for the principles of the UN Charter, peaceful resolution of disputes, and respect for sovereignty and territorial integrity.
'A mule operates someone else's account to transfer illegal money.'
Hacker group John Wick is said to be responsible for the Paytm Mall database breach.
Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman on Friday asked private sector companies to clear dues to small businesses within 45 days and admitted that the central departments and enterprises are also not making payments to them on time. She conceded that the Centre, states and state-owned enterprises too have outstanding dues to micro, small and medium enterprises (MSMEs). The minister said that at a meeting with big businesses here two days ago, she had appealed to them to ensure that the dues of small businesses, who are the backbone of the economy, are cleared on time.
Whether one likes it or not, services constitute the value-addition sector that the country has to build on, using its comparative advantage in infotech and related skills, suggests T N Ninan.
The reason for digital and IT interventions increasingly being adopted is not just the change in ways commuters move but also the mode on which this transport moves, says Jyoti Mukul.
Organisations value employees who go beyond their boundaries and step up to the occasion when the need arises.
It is imperative that young aspirants consider career options that will guarantee job security -- roles that are centred around technology.
'Just the amount of work which is there just to become more and more successful in banking. For this to happen you need to have leaders who understand technology.'
The Indian government is concerned only because Indian names are involved, the source said.
After the massive tax evasion of GST by cryptocurrency service provider WazirX, the Directorate General of GST Intelligence has come down heavily on cryptocurrency exchanges operating in the country, said sources. "Around half a dozen offices of cryptocurrency service providers have been searched and massive Goods and Service Tax (GST) evasion has been detected by DGGI," sources told ANI. Crypto wallet and exchange are platforms where merchants and consumers can transact with digital assets like bitcoin, ethereum, ripple, etc.
'If we have to restrict and fight terrorism, first and foremost, we have to ensure communal harmony in the country.'
We asked colleagues, present and past, to reflect on a man who has made such a difference to their lives and careers. Here it is then, a rich collection of memories that offer enchanting glimpses of the enigmatic Ajit Balakrishnan.
In the start-up world, hitting the $1-billion mark, which accords the "Unicorn" tag, is a milestone. Enterprises typically reach the milestone only by series C or series D, or three to four funding rounds later. Zeta achieved it at the first one. On May 25, the six-year-old banking tech firm raised $250 million from Japanese conglomerate SoftBank, at a post-money valuation of $1.45 billion. "This is the first time we have raised institutional money," Zeta co-founder Bhavin Turakhia beamed on the conference call. This trajectory is uncommon in start-ups.
More people using the internet for financial and e-commerce transactions has led to job creation in a niche segment. Specialists who can help deal with rising technology (tech) frauds are in high demand amid the surge in electronic transactions during the pandemic. Demand for tech fraud experts has risen upwards of 35 per cent, reveals employment and human resource services company TeamLease Services.
Here's the full text of Prime Minister Narendra Modi's address to a joint session of the United States Congress, delivered on Thursday.
They will not be followed by analysts and no fund manager can buy such small companies with low trading liquidity.
Large companies, those that are talked about in the media and tracked on social media, have already been discovered. They won't lead to extraordinary gains, Debashish Basu points out.
Six consecutive profitable quarters after an equal number of losses - for Bharti Airtel, the turnaround has been quick. But it is not a result of higher tariffs or absence of exceptional items alone. Execution and strategy are playing a part, too. Bharti Airtel's chief executive officer Gopal Vittal summed it up in a post-result conference call last month. "We track the profit in each of our 237,500 (cell) sites.
GenNext Innovation Hub is also pursuing a new global partnership program to collaborate with organizations in US, Europe and Asia.
The government is in no mood to buy the privacy and security argument pitched by WhatsApp, whereas the American firm says traceability will undermine end-to-end encryption and the private nature of the app, creating potential for serious abuse.
Entirely new businesses have been built using data to disrupt traditional companies.
New offerings by banks are changing the way you transact.
Becoming a unicorn is surely a marker for a company in its growth story, but it's not a major achievement nor is it a turning point of any significant worth.
