Google CEO Sundar Pichai in India
It’s either the billion plus market of India or just plain connections with the mother country or perhaps to help make lives better of people living in remote villages, India attracts all these tech giants as they come calling. First Microsoft head Satya Nadella then Facebook’s Mark Zuckerberg and now Sundar Pichai, Google CEO is in India.
This is Sundar’s first India as well as overseas trip of the India-born CEO of the US technology giant. Pichai, along with other top executives from Google and YouTube, talked about the company’s plans for India. Here are key takeaways from what Google CEO said.
1. 100 stations to go live with Wi-Fi by 2016-end
Technology giant Google will bring internet connectivity to 100 railway stations across the country by next year. The telecom wing of the Indian Railway, RailTel, had signed an agreement with the subsidiary of Google India to provide Wi-Fi facilities at 400 stations across the country. Mumbai Central station will be the first station to get Wi-Fi by January.
2. Google is hiring
Google is looking at hiring people for Bangalore and Hyderabad.
3. New campus coming in Hyderabad
We will also build huge new campus in Hyderabad to build capabilities.
4. To train 2 million developers in India
The company is also partnering with the National Skill Development Council to train 2 million developers in India.
5. Internet for all
Stressing on importance of internet connectivity, he said that it is critical to spread the reach of internet across the country. And in this, “mobile internet can be a game changer,” Pichai said. “Our focus is on bringing internet access to everyone, making sure our products are working for them in a meaningful way and then ensure our platform allows them to add their voice to the internet,” Google CEO said.
Google’s rural internet programme will move from pilot to full scale programme in 300,000 villages in India.
6. Pichai said as part of Google’s efforts to help women get online, the company is expanding ‘bicycle for women’ programme nationally. The company will help women from 3 lakh villages across India to get online in three years.
7. Project Loon coming to India
Through its Project Loon, online search giant plans to provide internet connectivity using balloons. It has already tested this technology in New Zealand, California (the US) and Brazil. As per Google, each balloon can provide connectivity to a ground area about 40km in diameter using a wireless communications technology called LTE or 4G.
8. Android users in India to surpass those in US by 2016
US-based Google is bullish on the Indian market, which it called among its most important.
9. Pichai: Thank you India
“This country has given me and Google so much and I just hope we can give much more to the country,” he said, adding: “A lot of what today is about is how we build products for the next billion Indian users, yet to come online.”
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