Narendra Modi’s visit to the U.S.is a stark contrast to Xi Jinping’s trip last week.
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Modi has invited Apple to set up a manufacturing base in India post his meeting with CEO Tim Cook.
Microsoft got in on the action, holding a dinner in Modi’s honor and announcing plans to launch affordable broadband in 500,000 Indian villages, according to the Times of India.
India is yet to announce its Common but Differentiated Responsibilities (CBDRs), while many developed nations have done that already.
India won’t mind, though. “I want our 1.25 billion citizens to be digitally connected”, PTI reports the PM’s speech addressing the massive crowd and the tech titans in the US.
“We discussed how we can further refine our strategic vision”, said Obama after the hour-long talks, third between the two leaders in over a year.
“India will play a big part in driving technology forward in the future”, said Google CEO Sunder Pichai.
Modi said he understands their challenges, but also the wonderful feeling of creating something new. In return, Zuckerberg told Modi that on a spiritual visit to India, taken when Facebook “wasn’t doing so well”, he found renewed focus for Facebook’s mission.
Swarup, while briefing on Modi’s meetings with Obama as well as UK Premier David Cameron and French President Francois Hollande, said Pakistan came up in the context of terrorism.
He also traveled to West Coast where he visited Facebook Headquarters for a Townhall Q&A with its CEO Mark Zuckerberg.
Cook expressed his great desire to be a partner in Prime Minister’s Digital India initiative, which he thought was a transformative initiative, which could be a real game changer in India.
“I changed my profile picture to support Digital India, the Indian government’s effort to connect rural communities to the internet and give people access to more services online”.
Modi’s Facebook appearance comes during the politician’s whirlwind tour of Silicon Valley that has included meetings with the CEOs of Apple, Google, Tesla and other leading tech companies.
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“The basic point that the Prime Minister made (relating to climate change) was that India’s commitment to environmental conservation is second to none”.
