NITI Aayog Positive On New Age Tech; Expects IoT To Be A $70 Bn Market

After introducing a slew of measures in various sectors, the Indian think-tank NITI Aayog seems to be optimistic about new age technologies. Speaking at the 12^th India Digital Summit, organised by the Internet and Mobile Association of India (IAMAI), NITI Aayog CEO Amitabh Kant forecasted the IOT market in India to be worth $70 Bn by 2025.

As he said, “Today, 85% of the devices are still unconnected. Therefore, there is a huge opportunity in the Internet of Things (IoT) space.”

This is the 12th edition of India Digital Summit. Organised by IAMAI, it will focus on trending and most debatable issues rising in the Indian ecosystem such as government policies, cryptocurrency, entertainment tech, adtech, digital transformation and more.

So far, the event has hosted eminent speakers including PM Narendra Modi. This year the list of speakers is again mesmerising with names such as Amitabh Kant, NITI Aayog; Ajit Mohan, CEO, Hot Star; Amol Mathur, Director-Security Division, Akamai Technologies; Deep Kalra, CEO and Group Chairman, Make My Trip; Rajan Anandan, MD, Google India & Chairman, IAMAI; Sanjeev Bikhchandani, Co-founder, InfoEdge; Vijay Shekhar Sharma, Founder, Paytm; and Virender Sehwag, Former Cricketer, Team India besides others.

NITI Aayog CEO Amitabh Kant: Positive On Growth Of New Age Tech, Digital Payments And More

Amitabh Kant further added that apart from IoT, AI and Advanced robotics are also the rising sectors in Indian ecosystem. “This is a period of huge technology disruption in India. Artificial Intelligence (AI) alone will generate the opportunity to the tune of $32 Bn. Advanced robotics are already handling 25% of the jobs. This will rise to 45% in the coming years.”

NITI Aayog considers the driving factors for this growth to be increased internet penetration, smartphone adoption and rise in the number of digital transactions. In his keynote speech at the India Digital Summit, Amitabh Kant claimed that every Indian will have a smartphone in the next five years.

He further added, “India is already ranked globally as the most active Internet user globally on a monthly basis. The digital transaction will touch $100 Tn in the next 10 years. Also, with 99% Aadhaar penetration and the bank account opened under Jan Dhan Yojana, the scope is immense for the Indian fintech industry.”

Also, Aruna Sundararajan, Chairman TC & Secy (IT), Dept of Telecommunication, Govt of India, shared that for Internet of Things (IoT) to happen we need to have a robust 4G ecosystem in the country. “And I am hopeful that by the end of this year, we will have a pan-India 4G network availability.”

During the India Digital Summit, NITI Aayog also claimed that India will home to 25 unicorns by 2022. Amitabh Kant also highlighted the fact that these unicorns will cater to the needs of 1 Bn people in India as well as will have the potential to scale to 7 Bn population globally.

Rajan Anandan, Chairman, IAMAI & Vice President, Google India & South-East Asia further stated, “the next set of unicorns in India will not just be a unicorn but will be profitable.”

Other Key Takeaways From The India Digital Summit

• Suresh Prabhu, Minister of Commerce and Industry said that India is expected to become a $5 Tn economy in the next eight to nine years with the manufacturing sector alone contributing 20%
• Ministry is preparing a roadmap to include all sectors where manufacturing can be promoted
• Ministry Of Commerce believes that if manufacturing alone is digitised it will create a huge opportunity for technology firms.
• Suresh Prabhu claimed to be working on a strategy for international trade which will contribute $2 Tn to the economy.
• Aruna Sundararajan mentioned that the government has constituted a task force for national mission and vision for rolling out 5G network in the country.
• The government aspires to increase the wifi access points from 40K to 5 Lakhs by the end of 2018.

On the first day of India Digital Summit, the Indian government leaders and different government organisations including NITI Aayog have shown a ray of hope for the Indian startup ecosystem. The advancement of new age tech, digital payments as well as manufacturing and telecom sectors will certainly lead way for a new India.