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Time of India
2 days ago
- Business
- Time of India
India's global footprint: Bold initiatives that fuse ambition with action
Over the last ten years, India's global footprint has expanded thereby ensuring India's voice resonating across global platforms. From the presidency at the G20 Summit, to initiatives such as the Vaccine Maitri program, in the last 11 years, India has emerged as a global leader through impactful initiatives that blend vision with execution. Tired of too many ads? Remove Ads Tired of too many ads? Remove Ads Over the last ten years, India 's global footprint has expanded thereby ensuring India's voice resonating across global platforms. From the presidency at the G20 Summit, to initiatives such as the Vaccine Maitri program, in the last 11 years, India has emerged as a global leader through impactful initiatives that blend vision with presidency of the G20 spotlighted the Global South and delivered concrete outcomes, including the launch of the Global Biofuels Alliance. Whether through diplomacy, humanitarian aid, or strategic defence, India has crafted a new narrative of influence and the last 11 years, India has stepped up as a global leader through impactful initiatives that blend vision with execution. This is reflected across areas such as climate change, energy transition, public health or artificial intelligence. India shows that it has driven conversations and crafted coalitions that put the nation's priorities at the centre of global discoursePrime Minister Narendra Modi 's leadership has anchored these efforts in responsibility and inclusivity, ensuring India's voice resonates across global global leadership prowess of India was reflected during the G20 presidency, where a major highlight was the unanimous adoption of the New Delhi Leaders' Declaration, despite deep divides on global issues like the Ukraine conflict. This achievement underscored India's growing stature as a consensus-builder and its ability to lead amid global notable foreign policy outcomes have been India co-chairing the AI Action Summit in Paris in 2024, Vaccine Maitri initiative sunder which India supplied over 30.12 crore vaccine doses to 99 countries and 2 UN bodies. This bolstered India as a reliable partner for global health and a compassionate voice from the global intiatives such as the International Solar Alliance, engagement with the Global south through intiatives such as the MAHASAGAR Doctrine, global partnerships reflected in multi and plurilateral forums such as BRICS, QUAD, G20 have resulted in conclusion of IMEC Corridor agreement, and the formation of the Global Biofuels India's global diplomatic presence, since 2014-2024, India has opened 39 new embassies and consulates, bringing the total number to the recent past, relief and evacuation efforts by the government stand testimony to the idea of "nation first" major evacuation missions include, Vande Bharat Mission (2020-22); Operation Devi Shakti, Afghanistan (2021), Operation Ganga, Ukraine (2022); Operation Kaveri , Sudan (2023) and Operation Ajay, Israel amongst PM Modi, India's approach has been rooted in responsibility and inclusion, always placing national interest within a wider humanitarian framework. These initiatives have helped India shape a new global order while safeguarding its sovereignty and amplifying its strategic voice.
India Gazette
3 days ago
- Business
- India Gazette
India's global footprint: Bold initiatives that fuse ambition with action
New Delhi [India], June 19 (ANI): Over the last ten years, India's global footprint has expanded thereby ensuring India's voice resonating across global platforms. From the presidency at the G20 Summit, to initiatives such as the Vaccine Maitri program, in the last 11 years, India has emerged as a global leader through impactful initiatives that blend vision with execution. India's presidency of the G20 spotlighted the Global South and delivered concrete outcomes, including the launch of the Global Biofuels Alliance. Whether through diplomacy, humanitarian aid, or strategic defence, India has crafted a new narrative of influence and self-reliance. In the last 11 years, India has stepped up as a global leader through impactful initiatives that blend vision with execution. This is reflected across areas such as climate change, energy transition, public health or artificial intelligence. India shows that it has driven conversations and crafted coalitions that put the nation's priorities at the centre of global discourse Prime Minister Narendra Modi's leadership has anchored these efforts in responsibility and inclusivity, ensuring India's voice resonates across global platforms. The global leadership prowess of India was reflected during the G20 presidency, where a major highlight was the unanimous adoption of the New Delhi Leaders' Declaration, despite deep divides on global issues like the Ukraine conflict. This achievement underscored India's growing stature as a consensus-builder and its ability to lead amid global uncertainty. Several notable foreign policy outcomes have been India co-chairing the AI Action Summit in Paris in 2024, Vaccine Maitri initiative sunder which India supplied over 30.12 crore vaccine doses to 99 countries and 2 UN bodies. This bolstered India as a reliable partner for global health and a compassionate voice from the global south. Other intiatives such as the International Solar Alliance, engagement with the Global south through intiatives such as the MAHASAGAR Doctrine, global partnerships reflected in multi and plurilateral forums such as BRICS, QUAD, G20 have resulted in conclusion of IMEC Corridor agreement, and the formation of the Global Biofuels Alliance. Expanding India's global diplomatic presence, since 2014-2024, India has opened 39 new embassies and consulates, bringing the total number to 219. In the recent past, relief and evacuation efforts by the government stand testimony to the idea of 'nation first' policy. Some major evacuation missions include, Vande Bharat Mission (2020-22); Operation Devi Shakti, Afghanistan (2021), Operation Ganga, Ukraine (2022); Operation Kaveri , Sudan (2023) and Operation Ajay, Israel amongst others. Under PM Modi, India's approach has been rooted in responsibility and inclusion, always placing national interest within a wider humanitarian framework. These initiatives have helped India shape a new global order while safeguarding its sovereignty and amplifying its strategic voice. (ANI)
Business Times
3 days ago
- Business
- Business Times
Restoring European tech leadership
[PARIS] Over the past few decades, the European Union has been relegated from global technology player to passive consumer of technologies developed elsewhere. Today, 80 per cent of the technologies and services Europe needs for its digital transformation are designed and manufactured beyond its borders, mostly in the United States and China. So deep is this consumer mindset that it has even shaped the philosophy behind our laws: the goal of recent tech regulations such as the Digital Services Act and the Digital Markets Act was to protect Europeans as consumers, by keeping us safe online and ensuring fair competition. To their credit, these laws offer strong protections for EU citizens, and they have even served as blueprints for competition policy and online safety worldwide. Regulatory excellence has become Europe's trademark. But without a complementary innovation policy, and an assessment of whether our current rules promote or impede it, we risk becoming a mere spectator in the global tech race, particularly in the AI domain. Despite the deals announced during the AI Action Summit in Paris earlier this year, overall foreign direct investment into Europe fell to its lowest level in nine years in 2024, with France and Germany experiencing double-digit declines. And this decline is accompanied by other worrying figures: the EU's share of the global information and communication technology (ICT) market fell from 21.8 per cent in 2013 to 11.3 per cent in 2022. Need for a well-considered strategy For too long, Europeans have passively benefited from Silicon Valley's risk-taking and Shenzhen's manufacturing prowess. But this was not a free lunch. As former European Central Bank president Mario Draghi, the author of a landmark 2024 report on European competitiveness, put it, Europeans have done 'everything we could to keep innovation at a low level'. Europe must do much more than simply catch up to America and China. To reclaim a place in the global tech industry, it urgently needs to rethink its entire approach to autonomy, alliances, regulation, and leadership. This calls for a well-considered strategy. The aim is to ensure our security by building our own core capabilities, not to achieve technological autarky or autonomy in isolation. It makes little sense to invest heavily in technologies that are hard to scale or export. Recent efforts to develop homegrown cloud computing and alternatives to Google Search were motivated mainly by the desire for technological independence; but they have not succeeded despite strong political backing. Looking ahead, such projects' commercial viability should be stress-tested before they consume too much time or resources. BT in your inbox Start and end each day with the latest news stories and analyses delivered straight to your inbox. Sign Up Sign Up One especially important issue is strategic interdependence, particularly when it comes to critical physical and digital infrastructures. At this point, no country could withstand an abrupt shutdown of digital payments, for example. That is why the payments sector has long relied on co-badging (multiple payment brands using the same payment instrument). And similar models of shared responsibility are found in the provision of submarine cables, low-orbit satellites, semiconductors, energy, and nuclear fusion. But expanding such partnerships requires a level playing field, so that all participants can use the available technological building blocks. For example, Helsing, the German-based drone startup, relies on open-source large language models developed by the French AI leader Mistral. Thanks to this synergistic arrangement, Helsing recently launched a factory with an initial monthly production capacity of more than 1,000 AI-enabled drones. We Europeans also must acknowledge our shortcomings. Draghi and former Italian Prime Minister Enrico Letta – the author of a major report on strengthening the European single market – have both warned that the current approach to enforcing the EU's digital laws is burdening small innovators. More clarity, simplicity, and predictability in our legal framework for tech would bolster the single market and attract talent and investment back to Europe. This is not about watering down privacy or copyright laws. It is about creating a regulatory environment that both empowers and safeguards market participants. Protections for fundamental rights At the same time, the work of protecting people in the digital realm is far from complete, considering that children around the world still lack comprehensive protections online. Harmonising European innovation policies with protections for fundamental rights will remain a top priority. But Europe cannot leverage its diplomatic and regulatory power if it has no tech champions capable of shaping digital products, services, and markets at the global level. In this respect, a coalition of like-minded companies from across the EU and other countries that share its values could play an important advocacy role. We need to show that generative AI could represent a major opportunity, but only if it is deployed in ways that respect human rights and workers. And we need to create technological and legal frameworks that promote equity and pluralism across our many languages. These are the big challenges and opportunities in front of us. To succeed, industry leaders and policymakers must collaborate closely with civil society, universities, and trade unions. It is not too late to restore Europe's status as a global leader in technology and innovation, and we know how to do it. The most important step is a change of mindset. PROJECT SYNDICATE The writer is president of the executive committee of the Human Technology Foundation
Arab News
3 days ago
- Business
- Arab News
Restoring European tech leadership
Over the past few decades, the EU has been relegated from global technology player to passive consumer of technologies developed elsewhere. Today, 80 percent of the technologies and services Europe needs for its digital transformation are designed and manufactured beyond its borders, mostly in the US and China. So deep is this consumer mindset that it has even shaped the philosophy behind its laws: the goal of recent tech regulations like the Digital Services Act and the Digital Markets Act was to protect Europeans as consumers by keeping them safe online and ensuring fair competition. To their credit, these laws offer strong protections for EU citizens and they have even served as blueprints for competition policy and online safety worldwide. Regulatory excellence has become Europe's trademark. But without a complementary innovation policy — and an assessment of whether the bloc's current rules promote or impede it — the EU risks becoming a mere spectator in the global tech race, particularly in the artificial intelligence domain. Despite the deals announced during the AI Action Summit in Paris earlier this year, overall foreign direct investment into Europe fell to its lowest level in nine years in 2024, with France and Germany experiencing double-digit declines. And this decline is accompanied by other worrying figures: the EU's share of the global information and communications technology market fell from 21.8 percent in 2013 to 11.3 percent in 2022. For too long, Europeans have passively benefited from Silicon Valley's risk-taking and Shenzhen's manufacturing prowess. But this was not a free lunch. As former European Central Bank President Mario Draghi, the author of a landmark 2024 report on European competitiveness, put it, Europeans have done 'everything we could to keep innovation at a low level.' The EU risks becoming a mere spectator in the global tech race, particularly in the artificial intelligence domain Eric Salobir Europe must do much more than simply catch up to America and China. To reclaim a place in the global tech industry, it urgently needs to rethink its entire approach to autonomy, alliances, regulation and leadership. This calls for a well-considered strategy. The aim is to ensure security by building its own core capabilities, not to achieve technological autarky or autonomy in isolation. It makes little sense to invest heavily in technologies that are hard to scale or export. Recent efforts to develop homegrown cloud computing and alternatives to Google Search were motivated mainly by the desire for technological independence — but they have not succeeded despite strong political backing. Looking ahead, such projects' commercial viability should be stress-tested before they consume too much time or resources. One especially important issue is strategic interdependence, particularly when it comes to critical physical and digital infrastructures. At this point, no country could withstand an abrupt shutdown of digital payments, for example. That is why the payments sector has long relied on co-badging (multiple payment brands using the same payment instrument). And similar models of shared responsibility are found in the provision of submarine cables, low-orbit satellites, semiconductors, energy and nuclear fusion. But expanding such partnerships requires a level playing field, so that all participants can use the available technological building blocks. For example, Helsing, the German-based drone startup, relies on open-source large language models developed by the French AI leader Mistral. Thanks to this synergistic arrangement, Helsing recently launched a factory with an initial monthly production capacity of more than 1,000 AI-enabled drones. This is about creating a regulatory environment that both empowers and safeguards market participants Eric Salobir Europeans must also acknowledge their shortcomings. Draghi and former Italian Prime Minister Enrico Letta — the author of a major report on strengthening the European single market — have both warned that the current approach to enforcing the EU's digital laws is burdening small innovators. More clarity, simplicity and predictability in the legal framework for tech would bolster the single market and attract talent and investment back to Europe. This is not about watering down privacy or copyright laws. It is about creating a regulatory environment that both empowers and safeguards market participants. At the same time, the work of protecting people in the digital realm is far from complete, considering that children around the world still lack comprehensive protections online. Harmonizing European innovation policies with protections for fundamental rights will remain a top priority. But Europe cannot leverage its diplomatic and regulatory power if it has no tech champions capable of shaping digital products, services and markets at the global level. In this respect, a coalition of like-minded companies from across the EU and other countries that share its values could play an important advocacy role. The EU needs to show that generative AI could represent a major opportunity, but only if it is deployed in ways that respect human rights and workers. And it needs to create technological and legal frameworks that promote equity and pluralism across the bloc's many languages. These are the big challenges and opportunities in front of us. To succeed, industry leaders and policymakers must collaborate closely with civil society, universities and trade unions. It is not too late to restore Europe's status as a global leader in technology and innovation. The most important step is a change of mindset. Copyright: Project Syndicate
New Statesman
13-06-2025
- Business
- New Statesman
AI regulation does not stifle innovation
Photo credit: Claudenakagawa / Shutterstocl Ever since co-founding the All-Party Parliamentary Group on AI nine years ago, still ably administered by the Big Innovation Centre, I've been deeply involved in debating and advising on the implications of artificial intelligence. My optimism about AI's potential remains strong – from helping identify new Parkinson's treatments to DeepMind's protein structure predictions that could transform drug discovery and personalised medicine. Yet this technology is unlike anything we've seen before. It's potentially more autonomous, with greater impact on human creativity and employment, and more opaque in its decision-making processes. The conventional wisdom that regulation stifles innovation needs turning on its head. As AI becomes more powerful and pervasive, appropriate regulation isn't just about restricting harmful practices – it's key to driving widespread adoption and sustainable growth. Many potential AI adopters are hesitating not due to technological limitations but Tim Clement-Jones Liberal Democrat peer and spokesperson for the digital economy uncertainties about liability, ethical boundaries and public acceptance. Clear regulatory frameworks addressing algorithmic bias, data privacy and decision transparency can actually accelerate adoption by providing clarity and confidence. Different jurisdictions are adopting varied approaches. The European Union's AI Act, with its risk-based framework, started coming into effect this year. Singapore has established comprehensive AI governance through its model AI governance framework. Even China regulates public-facing generative AI models with fairly heavy inspection regimes. The UK's approach has been more cautious. The previous government held the AI Safety Summit at Bletchley Park and established the AI Safety Institute (now inexplicably renamed the AI Security Institute), but with no regulatory teeth. The current government has committed to binding regulation for companies developing the most powerful AI models, though progress remains slower than hoped. Notably, 60 countries – including Saudi Arabia and the UAE, but not Britain or the US – signed the Paris AI Action Summit declaration in February this year, committing to ensuring AI is 'open, inclusive, transparent, ethical, safe, secure and trustworthy'. Several critical issues demand urgent attention. Intellectual property: the use of copyrighted material for training large language models without licensing has sparked substantial litigation and, in the UK, unprecedented parliamentary debate. Governments need to act decisively to ensure creative works aren't ingested into generative AI models without return to rights-holders, with transparency duties on developers. Digital citizenship: we must equip citizens for the AI age, ensuring they understand how their data is used and AI's ethical implications. Beyond the UAE, Finland and Estonia, few governments are taking this seriously enough. Subscribe to The New Statesman today from only £8.99 per month Subscribe International convergence: despite differing regulatory regimes, we need developers to collaborate and commercialise innovations globally while ensuring consumer trust in common international ethical and safety standards. Well-designed regulation can be a catalyst for AI adoption and innovation. Just as environmental regulations spurred cleaner technologies, AI regulations focusing on explainability and fairness could push developers toward more sophisticated, responsible systems. The goal isn't whether to regulate AI, but how to regulate it promoting both innovation and responsibility. We need principles-based rather than overly prescriptive regulation, assessing risk and emphasising transparency and accountability without stifling creativity. Achieving the balance between human potential and machine innovation isn't just possible – it's necessary as we step into an increasingly AI-driven world. That's what we must make a reality. This article first appeared in our Spotlight on Technology supplement, of 13 June 2025. Related
