IBM's AI Skilling Push in India: Sitharaman, Goyal, Vaishnaw Hold Talks

The meeting, which also included Sandip Patel, Managing Director for IBM India & South Asia region, focused on advancing AI skilling initiatives and equipping Indian talent with future-ready capabilities.

In a post on X, the office of the Union Minister highlighted the interaction, stating, "Dr Arvind Krishna (@ArvindKrishna), Chairman & CEO, @IBM & Shri Sandip Patel (@SandipPatel_In), Managing Director, IBM India (@ibm_in), call on Smt @nsitharaman."

Furthering the government-wide engagement with the tech major, Union Minister for Commerce and Industry Piyush Goyal also held high-level discussions on Tuesday with global corporate leaders, including Arvind Krishna and Jefferies' Christopher Wood.

These talks focused on India's growing role in the global technology and investment landscape. Following his meeting with the IBM chief, Goyal highlighted the technology major's deepening commitment to the Indian market and its emphasis on emerging technologies.

"Held a constructive meeting with Arvind Krishna, CEO of IBM. We discussed the company's expanding footprint in India, with a strong focus on advancing AI skilling initiatives to equip our talent with future-ready capabilities. Encouraging to see global technology leaders contributing meaningfully to India's innovation and sustainability goals," the Union Minister posted on X.

These discussions align with a broader strategic roadmap shared by Union Minister of Electronics and Information Technology Ashwini Vaishnaw on Monday, who revealed that IBM is planning significant investments in quantum computing and cloud infrastructure across India.

Sharing the update after a meeting with senior IBM officials, Vaishnaw noted that these efforts are expected to create new opportunities for the country's technology talent pool.

In a social media post, Ashwini Vaishnaw said, "IBM is planning investments in quantum computing and cloud infrastructure across India. It is further strengthening its design teams in India, especially in advanced semiconductor nodes. These efforts will generate more opportunities for India's young talent pool."

The Minister's engagement with IBM follows earlier high-level talks during the World Economic Forum summit at Davos, where he met Arvind Krishna and Meta's Joel Kaplan to discuss India's growing role in the global technology landscape.

During those discussions, the focus was on the safety of social media users, particularly addressing concerns related to deep fakes and AI-generated content.

Vaishnaw also highlighted that collaboration with IBM will strengthen India's efforts in advanced chip technology, including 7 nm and 2 nm semiconductor nodes.

He noted that this partnership will help in further developing India's semiconductor talent pool and support the country's ambitions to become a major hub for advanced semiconductor design and technology.

- ANI