Google to invest Rs 75,000 crore in India to boost digital economy

Google on Monday said it will invest Rs 75,000 crore in India over the next 5-7 years to boost the adoption of digital technologies, as tech firms race to grab a slice of one the world's largest and fastest-growing internet markets.

Google and Alphabet CEO Sundar Pichai said this would be done through 'Google for India Digitisation Fund'.

The search engine giant's announcement comes against the backdrop of Reliance Jio's unceasing stake sale, with the Mukesh Ambani-owned firm raising a stupendous Rs 1.18 lakh crore worth investments from global investors that included Facebook, General Atlantic and Qualcomm.

"Today, I’m excited to announce the Google for India Digitisation Fund. Through this effort, we will invest Rs 75,000 crore, or approximately $10 billion, into India over the next 5-7 years. We’ll do this through a mix of equity investments, partnerships, and operational, infrastructure and ecosystem investments, " Pichai said.

The latest move, said Pichai, is a reflection of the company’s confidence in future of India and its digital economy.

The investment will focus on digital India projects, which include enabling affordable access and information to every Indian in their own language, building new products and services relevant to India’s unique needs, empowering businesses as they continue to embark in digital transformation, and leveraging technology and Artificial Intelligence for social good in areas like healthcare, education and agriculture, he said.

"There’s still more work to do in order to make the internet affordable and useful for a billion Indians…from improving voice input and computing for all of India’s languages, to inspiring and supporting a whole new generation of entrepreneurs," he said.

"Over the years, we’ve invested in many Indian businesses through Google, as well as through our growth equity investment fund CapitalG," Pichai said.

Earlier in the day he held discussion with Prime Minister Narendra Modi through video conference on number of issues including new challenges in post-Covid era, new work culture, new technology to benefit to farmers and students.

Pichai briefed the PM about new products and initiatives by Google in the country, including the launch of AI Research Lab in Bengaluru, while also highlighting the benefits of Google's flood forecasting efforts, said a statement from the Prime Minister Office.

The PM also discussed the issue of data security and concerns around privacy. He said that tech companies need to put in efforts to bridge the trust deficit, said a statement.