Sitharaman explores global investment in AI, Energy

San Francisco

Union Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman engaged with global CEOs, pension fund managers, and institutional investors to explore investment opportunities in areas like energy, sustainability, and innovation. She highlighted India’s Rs 1 lakh crore ($12 billion) fund dedicated to private sector–led research and innovation, and also spoke about the GIFT-IFSC initiative.

The Finance Minister, along with Finance Secretary Ajay Seth and Indian Ambassador to the US Vinay Mohan Kwatra, listened to investor feedback on Indian reforms and gave insights on India’s policy environment. The investors showed strong interest in expanding investment ties between the US and India and shared ways to enhance the investment process. Sitharaman thanked them for their inputs.

In separate meetings, Sitharaman discussed opportunities in AI, Cloud, and digital infrastructure with top global leaders.

Jonathan Siddharth, CEO of Turing, shared his ambition for India to lead the global AI movement, saying he aims to build a sovereign AI model with Indian talent.

Debanjan Saha, CEO of DataRobot, spoke about India’s potential as an AI superpower and interest in joining the AI Centre of Excellence, backed by a Rs 500 crore budget.

Sitharaman also highlighted India’s digital growth, AI initiatives like BharatGen, Sarvam-1, and Srijan Centre at IIT Jodhpur, and the Rs 10,300 crore IndiaAI Mission.

In meetings with leaders from Andreessen Horowitz, VMware, and Google Cloud, she discussed India’s digital transformation and potential for collaboration. Thomas Kurian praised India’s AI efforts and shared Google Cloud’s clean energy goals and future investments.