On Monday, artificial intelligence took central stage when Microsoft CEO Satya Nadella got engaged in a conversation with Infosys co-founder Nandan Nilekani and online retailer Flipkart's co-founder Binny Bansal.
The trio discussed ways in which the right use of data can pave the way ahead for a digital transformation. "AI will aid innovative startups in health and education to do more," noted Nadella.
"Data, if used for individual development, can lead to empowerment of every citizen of India," said Nilekani, who was also former chairman of the Unique Identification Authority of India, the largest biometric database created in the world for the Centre's Aadhaar programme. He added government laid down digital highways, which in turn, opened up new avenues for digital entrepreneurs.
Lauding India's enthusiasm in the startup space, Nadella said more than 2,000 startups in the country are using Microsoft's cloud. "India has amazing entrepreneurial energy," Nadella said.
The event also saw Microsoft and e-commerce major Flipkart announcing their new business tie-up, wherein the latter will be using Azure, Microsoft's cloud platform, to boost its e-retail sales. "AI will empower us to reach a global audience," said Bansal.
It was Nadella's maiden visit to Bengaluru, the Silicon Valley of India, after he succeeded Steve Ballmer to become the chief executive officer of technology giant Microsoft in 2014. The Indian-born is an alumnus of the Manipal Institute of Technology, based in Karnataka.
