PM Modi interacts with Google CEO Sundar Pichai, discusses COVID-19 pandemic

Pichai briefed the Prime Minister about the efforts undertaken by Google to help spread awareness and provide reliable information about COVID-19.

Google CEO said that the strong step of lockdown initiated by the Prime Minister set up a very strong foundation of India’s battle against the pandemic.

PM Modi appreciated the proactive role played by Google in battling misinformation and conveying information about necessary precautions. He also talked about further leveraging technology in providing healthcare services.

"During our interaction, @sundarpichai and I spoke about the new work culture that is emerging in the times of COVID-19. We discussed the challenges the global pandemic has brought to areas such as sports. We also talked about the importance of data security and cyber safety," PM Modi revealed in a tweet.

The Prime Minister said that Indians are adjusting to and adopting technology at a rapid pace. He talked about farmers benefiting from technology and the possible wide-ranging benefits of AI in agriculture.

"This morning, had an extremely fruitful interaction with @sundarpichai. We spoke on a wide range of subjects, particularly leveraging the power of technology to transform the lives of India’s farmers, youngsters and entrepreneurs," PM Modi tweeted.

The Prime Minister explored the idea of virtual labs that can be used by students as well as farmers. Sundar Pichai briefed the PM about new products and initiatives by Google in the country.

He mentioned about the launch of AI Research Lab in Bengaluru, while also highlighting the benefits of Google's flood forecasting efforts.

"I was delighted to know more about the efforts of @Google  in several sectors, be it in education, learning, @_DigitalIndia  furthering digital payments and more. @sundarpichai," Modi wrote.

The Prime Minister was briefed about Google’s plan to launch a large investment fund and develop strategic partnerships in India.

The interaction came before Pichai announced that his company would invest an additional Rs 75,000 crore to accelerate the pace of India's digital economy and added that the company is "proud to support" PM Modi's vision.

During their interaction, Modi has remarked that India is amongst the most open economies in the world.

He also spoke about recent steps taken by the government towards reforming agriculture and about the campaign to create new jobs, while also highlighting the importance of re-skilling.

The PM discussed the issue of data security and concerns around privacy. He said that tech companies need to put in efforts to bridge the trust deficit.

He also talked about cyber crimes and threats in the form of cyber attacks.

Other areas of discussion included technological solutions to expand the scope of online education,access to technology in native language, use of AR/VR to give a stadium-like viewing experience in the field of sports, and progress in the area of digital payments.