CELEBRATE AND RECOGNIZE INNOVATIONS, NOT JUST COMMERCIAL SUCCESS
DataQuest|May 2023
Ravi Venkatesan was Chairman of Microsoft India, Bank of Baroda and Cummins India. He's Chairman of Global Energy Alliance for People and Planet, a Venture Partner with Unitus Seed Fund and Founder of Global Alliance for Mass Entrepreneurship. Here he talks about a wide range of issues, problems, solutions and the road leading to 2047.
Sunil Rajguru
CELEBRATE AND RECOGNIZE INNOVATIONS, NOT JUST COMMERCIAL SUCCESS

While we have become an IT services/ consultancy power, we still lack in W innovation. What more can the industry and government do to ensure innovation and more Make in India products to be created?

I won't entirely agree with the statement that we 'lack in innovation". Within IT services itself, the Global Delivery Model and accompanying innovations in scaling talent has been a game changer. Our IT services companies are doing a lot of innovation for clients. Our startup ecosystem is evolving from largely me-too businesses to several that are working on innovative ideas or applying new technologies like LLMs in innovative ways. Things like India Stack didn't come out of thin air; it was developed by people from the same IT ecosystem. But it's fair to say that there is lots of headroom to improve. For instance, it should be very concerning to us that when it comes to Foundation Models, no Indian company is in the game making us reliant on a few US firms. There is much that can be done by government, private sector and society at large. These are not new ideas. They simply need to be done.

1. Our education system is obsolete. It trains people to do things that machines can do better. We need to foster curiosity, critical thinking, problem solving, creativity. Beyond that our primary and secondary system is failing to produce a literate and numerate workforce which is detailed in the ASER reports.

2. Indian firms including stars like Infosys and TCS underinvest in R&D and this needs to be ramped up. The industry has to evolve faster from renting IQ to creating more IP.

3. There needs to be much better collaboration between companies and academia; this is improving in a couple of our elite IITs but we need to see much more.

4. We have to celebrate and recognize innovators and innovations, not just commercial success, so that more people are inspired to innovate.

This story is from the {{IssueName}} edition of {{MagazineName}}.

Start your 7-day Magzter GOLD free trial to access thousands of curated premium stories, and 9,000+ magazines and newspapers.

This story is from the {{IssueName}} edition of {{MagazineName}}.

Start your 7-day Magzter GOLD free trial to access thousands of curated premium stories, and 9,000+ magazines and newspapers.

MORE STORIES FROM DATAQUESTView all
Cold-Pressed AI Juice - Is That Bottle Here? Is It Worth It?
DataQuest

Cold-Pressed AI Juice - Is That Bottle Here? Is It Worth It?

Compressing AI models has been both an adventure and a formidable next-inflection-point in the many curves of AI innovation. Can we look for options better than, and beyond, erstwhile approaches like pruning and SLMs?

time-read
7 mins  |
October 2024
Indian Research: Far from a bouquet of ORCIDS yet. Why?
DataQuest

Indian Research: Far from a bouquet of ORCIDS yet. Why?

Indian brains are universally, and globally, applauded for their 'horse sense' - whether we look at our laser-sharp unicorns and wide-bracket start-ups or pride in the unshakeable global confidence placed for many decades in our IT industry. And yet, when it comes to top-drawer academic research, we are still considered by many as either a 'one horse town' or a 'one-trick pony'. Why this ever-widening gap against our global counterparts?

time-read
6 mins  |
October 2024
Accountability in the Age of AI
DataQuest

Accountability in the Age of AI

In this interview, Aayush Ghosh Choudhury, Co-Founder & CEO OF Scrut Automation shares insights on why clear accountability is essential when working with AI, how AI is transforming GRC practices, and the key risks organizations need to navigate. We also explore the advancements expected in the coming years and how organizations can strike a balance between AI adoption and compliance, ensuring responsible and ethical use of these powerful technologies.

time-read
5 mins  |
October 2024
Live On the Edge
DataQuest

Live On the Edge

How can companies leverage the combination of edge computing & AI to foster sustainability?

time-read
6 mins  |
October 2024
Technology and Fashion - The Vanilla Girl, without being Cheugy
DataQuest

Technology and Fashion - The Vanilla Girl, without being Cheugy

Moving the needle in fashion- now that can go either way- between being too soft to being too flashy. Especially when it's about AI's copyright issues, personalisation, VR in design, Counterfeits, Quiet Fashion, Image recognition and carbon impact. Can an elastic CRM-fabric and data's new look help in threading the technology needle?

time-read
5 mins  |
October 2024
AI does not facilitate financial crime, it helps to fight it.
DataQuest

AI does not facilitate financial crime, it helps to fight it.

Why and where do AI models, SLMs, synthetic data and recommendation engines work as angels in areas when the devil is always in the details?

time-read
7 mins  |
October 2024
Multi-million and multi-year deals are back-both for first-timers and mature outsourcers
DataQuest

Multi-million and multi-year deals are back-both for first-timers and mature outsourcers

With IT budgets tightening and global uncertainties rising, multi-million, multi-year outsourcing deals are making a comeback.

time-read
2 mins  |
October 2024
The Big Five in a Technology Safari
DataQuest

The Big Five in a Technology Safari

Mobile banking, Blockchain, AI, IT Modernisation and? Wait, is Physical Banking the 5th one? Africa has, for long and quite-deservedly, been brave about exploring the wild forests of banking innovations and on-ground solutions that fit the region's limitations and untapped opportunities to the T. How do you make sure you stay gutsy, relevant and on the right track in such a region? How do you make IT your navigator when you want to be the top pan-African bank? Johnson Idesoh, Group Chief Information and Technology Officer at Absa Group takes us around and gives a peek on what customers here are actually hunting for.

time-read
6 mins  |
October 2024
India's Quantum Bet - the Dark Horse Who Eats Dark Chocolate
DataQuest

India's Quantum Bet - the Dark Horse Who Eats Dark Chocolate

Or the Dark Matter? It's about the Quantum Race's Winning Gap. India could be the unexpected winner in quantum research, innovation and markets as long as we look beyond the QuBit game and fix real issues that still slow down the last lap. The action is happening, albeit invisible, till we see it shine in full glory.

time-read
10 mins  |
October 2024
Quantum Leap or Quantum Leap of Faith? Indian Industries Dive into Infinite Possibilities!
DataQuest

Quantum Leap or Quantum Leap of Faith? Indian Industries Dive into Infinite Possibilities!

India is on the brink of a quantum leap, as industries from finance to healthcare begin to explore the transformative power of quantum computing. With the capability to perform calculations at speeds unimaginable with classical computers, quantum technology is not just a futuristic concept-it's becoming a practical tool for solving today's most pressing challenges and unlocking new opportunities for growth.

time-read
6 mins  |
October 2024