Key Points

In his short piece written on Linkedin with the Title, " India's Moment: A Tribute to a Nation in Transformation", Aitken highlighted India's growth in all these years.

"In 1998, I believed India would lead the world. In 2025, it is. From satellites to semiconductors, from public platforms to space missions this is India's moment," Aitken said in a statement reflecting on his decades-long engagement with India's broadcast and digital ecosystem.

Aitken first visited India in 1998 as a technologist and speaker at the Broadcast Engineering Society conference. Recalling his early impressions, he said he saw a nation "brimming with potential, spirited, resourceful, ambitious."

"Even as India grappled with infrastructure gaps and economic constraints, I saw something else: resolve. India was not merely catching up. It was preparing to leap ahead," he noted.

Two decades later, he says, India has indeed "leapt, and is soaring."

Aitken lauded India's progress in sectors such as digital connectivity, semiconductors, artificial intelligence, and broadcasting, saying the country has become a "leader, especially for the Global South."

"India is not simply participating in the global economy. India is reshaping it," he said, citing examples like UPI-enabled financial inclusion, indigenous 4G/5G technology, and the Chandrayaan-3 lunar mission.

The US media executive emphasised that India's most significant resource lies in its people.

"India's greatest resource is not buried underground or locked in vaults. It walks its campuses, staffs its labs, works in factories and codes its platforms," he said.He credited India's education system and diaspora for shaping world-class talent that leads major global institutions.

Aitken also praised India's policy direction under Prime Minister Narendra Modi, noting that programs such as Digital India, Make in India, and Startup India are not "slogans" but "strategies, and they are working."

Reflecting on his continued engagement with India over the past eight years, Aitken said his work on Direct-to-Mobile (D2M) technologies represents more than just innovation it symbolises human connection.

"Bringing people together is what builds nations. I believe that D2M is an integral part of bringing people together. And that, my friends, is far bigger than India," he said.

Aitken added, "Back in 1998, I said that if India could channel its human capital with national focus, it wouldn't just be part of the future, it would define it. That future is now unfolding. India is not just taking the stage, it is shaping the script. This is India's moment."

- ANI