Edition

India Tech Tracker - June 2024

National, regional, and global tech-related developments of significance to India from June 2024.

Published on July 8, 2024

INNOVATION

FINANCIAL EXPRESS | June 25, 2024

The National Deep Tech Start-up Policy (NDTSP), aimed at the promotion and commercialization of early-stage technologies, is set to be presented to the cabinet for approval. The policy will not have a dedicated budget and will seek to guide ministries in supporting startups working on cutting-edge technology, said an official. The NDTSP defines deep tech start-ups as those based on scientific and engineering advancements with commercial potential. The policy draft was approved by the Empowered Technology Group, headed by the Principal Scientific Advisor earlier this month. It suggests a deep tech capital guidance fund to pool government and private investments and recommends fiscal incentives to attract domestic venture capital. Additionally, it outlines support for research, development, and innovation, while promoting procurement and adoption of deep tech solutions. The policy could be announced in the upcoming union budget, marking a significant step for over 10,000 deep tech start-ups in India.

PRESS INFORMATION BUREAU | June 19, 2024

The Indian Computer Emergency Response Team (CERT-In) has signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with Mastercard to enhance cooperation and information sharing in cybersecurity for the financial sector. As part of this agreement, Mastercard and CERT-In will conduct training programs and workshops focused on cyber capacity building, market trends, and best practices to improve the cybersecurity of financial sector organizations. Additionally, the two entities will share relevant cyber threat trends, technical information, threat intelligence, and vulnerability reports to strengthen India’s financial sector information security. CERT-In, a government organization under the Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology, has been designated as the national agency for incident response under Section 70B of the Information Technology Act, 2000.

THE ECONOMIC TIMES | June 14, 2024

Amazon Web Services (AWS) has committed $230 million to accelerate the development of generative AI and machine learning applications by startups worldwide. This investment will provide early-stage companies with AWS’s computing, storage, database, and specialized AI chip resources through allocated credits, as well as educational training and mentorship. A portion of this funding will also support the second cohort of the AWS Generative AI Accelerator, an incubator offering practical expertise and up to $1 million to each of its top eighty early-stage startups. This initiative comes amid investigation by competition watchdogs in the United States, the EU, and the UK into anti-competitive practices by big tech companies.

IndiaAI | June 13, 2024

Snapdeal, a leading e-commerce platform, has signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with the Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology’s language translation platform, Bhashini. Launched under the National Language Translation Mission (NLTM) and announced in the Indian government’s 2021–22 budget, Bhashini aims to enhance access to online services in various local Indian languages. This collaboration between Snapdeal and Bhashini is expected to leverage AI to bridge the digital divide and promote greater inclusion in the digital economy. Bhashini has a proven track record of successful partnerships, having signed an MoU with the Reserve Bank Innovation Hub (RBIH) in October last year to expand digital financial services in native languages. In January 2024, it also partnered with the business automation platform UiPath.

AL JAZEERA | June 7, 2024

SpaceX’s Starship rocket completed its inaugural full flight, marking a significant milestone for the prototype system envisaged to ultimately enable human missions to Mars. This achievement comes on the heels of three prior missions that culminated in explosions or disintegrations. In its latest flight, the spaceship withstood re-entry and executed a controlled descent into the Indian Ocean, sixty-five minutes after its launch from Texas in the United States. During the flight, it ascended to an altitude of nearly 211 kilometers before initiating its descent. This feat is a critical step forward in both SpaceX and NASA’s aspirations to develop a reusable rocket system, with a particular focus on using the Starship to safely transport astronauts to the lunar surface by 2026 in direct competition with China, which has declared its intent to achieve a manned lunar landing by 2030.

REGULATION

THE HINDU | June 25, 2024

The European Commission, the EU’s competition watchdog, has accused Microsoft of engaging in anti-competitive behavior. The charges, which could culminate in a substantial fine of up to 10 percent of the company’s annual revenue, assert that Microsoft unfairly advantaged its own communication platform, Teams, over rival workforce messaging services such as Slack and Zoom, by bundling it with its popular Office Suite. This move, initiated in response to a 2020 complaint lodged by Slack, is the most significant challenge to Microsoft since the legal proceedings instigated by the European Commission and the United States over the launch of Windows more than two decades ago.

THE HINDU | June 25, 2024

The United States government is investigating China Mobile, China Telecom, and China Unicom in its latest effort to prevent Chinese firms from exploiting U.S. data. This comes amid concerns that the firms could provide Beijing with American data through their U.S. cloud and internet businesses to harm companies, Americans, or national security. The investigation being run by the Commerce Department has not been made public. These companies have a presence in the United States providing cloud services and routing wholesale U.S. internet traffic which gives them access to Americans’ data despite being barred from providing telephone and retail internet services in the United States.

AL JAZEERA | June 24, 2024

Canada is considering implementing import tariffs on electric vehicles (EVs) manufactured in China, with a thirty-day public consultation period beginning in Ottawa on July 2. This initiative is driven by challenges faced by Canada’s domestic automotive sector due to China’s substantial production capabilities. Canadian deputy prime minister Chrystia Freeland stated that Chinese producers were “quite intentionally generating a global oversupply,” that has disadvantaged other players in the EV market. This move aims to align Canada with similar actions by the United States and the European Union. Recently, President Biden announced significant tariff increases on various Chinese imports, while the European Commission plans to impose additional tariffs of up to 38.1 percent on Chinese manufacturers. In response, China has denied accusations of unfair subsidies and overproduction, attributing its EV industry’s growth to the efficiency of its supply chain.

BUSINESS STANDARD | June 15, 2024

Ashwini Vaishnav has announced that the drafting of rules under the data protection legislation is in its advanced stages, with industry-wide consultations to commence soon. The implementation of the Digital Personal Data Protection (DPDP) Act will follow a “digital-by-design” principle, with platforms or portals developed in-house by organizations such as the National Informatics Centre and the Digital India Corporation. The DPDP Act was passed by Parliament in August 2023 with the aim of protecting the privacy of Indian citizens. It includes provisions for penalties of up to Rs 250 crore on entities that misuse or fail to protect individuals’ digital data.

SOUTH CHINA MORNING POST | June 11, 2024

Hong Kong’s privacy watchdog, the Privacy Commissioner for Personal Data (PCPD), has released the city’s first personal data protection guidelines for businesses that use generative AI services, emphasizing the need for risk assessments, human oversight, and data minimization in model training. The non-mandatory framework, the most comprehensive in Hong Kong to date, also recommends the establishment of an AI governance committee led by a C-level executive. The PCPD’s move aligns with the government’s incremental approach to AI regulation, focusing on voluntary guidelines and subject matter-specific measures. This initiative comes amid a rise in AI adoption in Hong Kong, with a report showing 88 percent of knowledge workers using generative AI tools, surpassing the global average. The PCPD has conducted compliance checks on local organizations, finding a majority in adherence to data regulations, and plans to continue these checks as AI usage grows.

TECHNOLOGY AND INTERNATIONAL AFFAIRS

MINISTRY OF DIGITAL ECONOMY AND DIGITAL TRANSFORMATION, TOGO | June 27, 2024

Togo and Kazakhstan recently signed three licensing agreements to mutually support the development of digital platforms and process massive data. These agreements were formalized during a working visit by a delegation from Kazakhstan’s National Information Technologies agency (NITEC) which signed the deal with Togo Digital Agency, as announced by the Togolese Ministry of Digital Economy and Transformation. The agreements establish a collaborative framework for the two countries in various digital sectors. While Kazakhstan is considered a major player in the digital transformation world, Togo is developing a MOSIP-based national digital ID system.

THE WHITE HOUSE | June 17, 2024

At the second iCET meeting held in New Delhi, the national security advisors of the United States and India committed to concrete actions addressing barriers to bilateral strategic trade, technology, and industrial cooperation. The two sides applauded the inaugural U.S.-India-ROK Trilateral Technology Dialogue and noted progress under the Strategic Trade Dialogue. The joint statement mentioned the plan to unlock over $90 million in joint funding over five years for the U.S.-India Global Challenges Institute to support university and research partnerships in semiconductor technology, clean energy, pandemic preparedness, and other critical technologies. The first tranche of nearly $5 million in funding awards from the National Science Foundation and the Indian Department of Science and Technology will support joint research projects in next-gen telecommunications, connected and autonomous vehicles, and machine learning. Progress in space and defense technologies was also highlighted, including a carrier for a NASA-ISRO astronaut mission to the International Space Station and a Strategic Framework for Human Spaceflight Cooperation. Additionally, the statement mentioned the INDUS-X initiative and collaborations between the U.S. Defense Innovation Unit and India’s Innovations for Defense Excellence (iDEX). A new “Bio-X” initiative will promote biotechnology cooperation in areas like molecular communication and the Internet of Bio-Nano Things. Other cooperation areas include semiconductor supply chains, critical minerals, quantum and high-performance computing, and advanced telecommunications.

THE JAPAN TIMES | June 15, 2024

The G7 leaders agreed to establish a common code of conduct for organizations engaging with artificial intelligence (AI) in the recently concluded summit in Italy. Building on the Hiroshima AI Process, a multilateral framework initiated during last year’s Hiroshima summit, the bloc concurred on enhancing regular consultations and working towards formulating common guidelines for AI oversight. The impact of AI on the workforce was also a significant theme in the joint communique, with G7 labor ministers tasked with developing an action plan for AI’s use in the workforce. At the summit, Prime Minister Fumio Kishida reaffirmed Japan’s leadership in the global AI conversation, emphasizing the need to close the digital divide between developed and developing countries. The group reiterated the importance of building equal partnerships with developing and emerging countries across the Global South.

GLOBAL TIMES | June 13, 2024

President Vladimir Putin has formalized Russia’s cooperation with China in the International Lunar Research Station (ILRS) project, joining thirty other signatories. The base will be constructed using basalt, a lunar material, which Chinese researchers project will significantly reduce costs compared to “importing” materials from Earth. This initiative is part of China’s broader campaign to bolster its global engagement in extraterrestrial exploration. Notably, Egypt, Bahrain, and the U.S.-based International Lunar Observatory Association have joined the forthcoming lunar mission, Chang’e-7, scheduled for launch around 2026, which aims to survey and gather samples from the lunar South Pole. Additionally, the Chinese National Space Administration announced that a payload co-developed by Egypt and Bahrain will be included in the 2026 mission.

NEXT 30 DAYS

FINANCIAL TIMES | June 28, 2024

The United States has invited the foreign ministers of Israel and several Arab nations—specifically Egypt, Jordan, Qatar, Tunisia, the UAE, and Bahrain—to attend the upcoming seventy-fifth anniversary NATO summit in Washington early next month. In addition to these Arab invitees, the United States has also extended invitations to foreign ministers from up to thirty-one countries with which it has diplomatic partnerships.

THE HINDU | June 13, 2024

The Kerala government, in partnership with IBM, is hosting a two-day international Gen AI conclave in Kochi on July 11 and 12. This event will gather industry leaders, innovators, and policymakers to discuss the transformative potential of AI and its potential effects on society and the economy. A senior executive from IBM Software highlighted the crucial role of public-private collaboration in advancing generative AI and achieving rapid progress as we move into the next phase of AI development.

Carnegie India does not take institutional positions on public policy issues; the views represented herein are those of the author(s) and do not necessarily reflect the views of Carnegie India, its staff, or its trustees.