Key Points

Speaking at the NEXT Milan Forum during a Plenary Session on 'Balancing Economic and Climate Resilience' at Bocconi University, Milan, she highlighted the challenges and opportunities emerging from new tech frontiers.

In a social media post on X, the minister stated that "Artificial Intelligence (AI) is a developing area. The regulatory mechanisms are also evolving. Regulators need to be up to date with them and handle them accordingly," highlighting the importance of timely adaptation to technological shifts.

She further noted that it would be impractical for any single country to have an isolated AI regulatory framework, as technology naturally transcends borders.

She said "it cannot also be that a country decided to have an AI who is a regulatory framework and who is independent of other countries because technology goes through borders"

Reflecting on India's recent leadership during its G20 Presidency, Sitharaman pointed to India's efforts in bringing crypto regulations to the global discussion table.

"During its G20 Presidency, India brought the matter of crypto to the table & wanted countries to discuss how to handle it without curbing the blockchain technology & at the same time regulate it smartly," she said.

Highlighting India's inherent advantages, Sitharaman remarked, "India has leverage from which the industry can benefit, and that's the demography that speaks English and understands global business practices and the law of the land."

She added that India continues to be an attractive destination for global industry, being an open and transparent economy built on shared value systems.

The Finance Minister also noted the shift in global trade dynamics, saying, " Signing bilateral agreements is the order of the day today. Multilateral agreements were in currency for sometime but today seems to be the time for countries to chalk their own bilateral arrangements."

Expressing satisfaction over recent developments on the India-UK FTA, she said, "I'm glad that our Hon'ble Prime Minister Shri Narendra Modi and the UK PM have announced that the negotiations have concluded on a positive note."

The minister is on an official visit to Milan, Italy, to attend the 58th Annual Meeting of the Board of Governors of the Asian Development Bank (ADB), scheduled from May 4 to 7.

- ANI