Humanity has all the time stood at turning factors. The invention of fireside was one such second—a power that remodeled how we lived, communicated, and linked. However fireplace was by no means simply heat and innovation; it additionally symbolised energy, hazard, and the necessity for duty.
As we speak, Synthetic Intelligence (AI) is our fireplace. It’s not simply the longer term—it’s already right here, quietly and radically reshaping the best way we work, be taught, govern, and develop. And very like fireplace, AI has the potential to unite or divide, to uplift or upend. The alternatives we make now will outline the subsequent century.
India is on the cusp of this transformation. India may enhance its GDP by a further $359 billion to $438 billion in FY 2029-30 by means of the adoption of Generative AI, surpassing baseline progress projections. That is greater than an financial alternative—it’s a social inflection level. As digital applied sciences transfer from elite boardrooms to on a regular basis lives, the nation wants leaders who perceive each legacy methods and the calls for of a digital future.
One such chief is Arundhati Bhattacharya, Chairperson and CEO of Salesforce India and former Chairperson of the State Financial institution of India. A uncommon determine who has straddled the worlds of conventional finance and cutting-edge expertise, she represents the sort of management this second requires: rooted in expertise, pushed by imaginative and prescient.
In a latest episode of the bilingual podcast All About AI, Arundhati provided greater than insights—she delivered a blueprint for a extra inclusive, AI-augmented India. Talking simply weeks after receiving the Padma Shri, she mirrored on her journey with attribute humility. “I’m fairly glad,” she mentioned with a quiet smile. “Getting this sort of honour makes everybody glad.” “However greater than that,” she added, “it’s a recognition of the contribution to nationwide growth—and that makes it much more particular.”
You possibly can watch the complete episode beneath,
Her achievement marked a historic first. She is the one public sector banker in India’s 70-year historical past to obtain the civilian honour. However much more hanging is how she has used each chapter of her profession—as a banker, a change maker, and now a tech chief—to push boundaries and redefine what’s doable.
From Banker to Tech Trailblazer: A Lesson in Reinvention
After over 4 many years on the State Financial institution of India, Arundhati may have retired on the prime. As a substitute, she joined Salesforce in 2020, at a time when the pandemic was accelerating digital adoption like by no means earlier than.
In keeping with a report, India is the third-largest digitalised nation on this planet when it comes to economy-wide digitalisation. It’s witnessing a leap in cloud computing, mobile-first engagement, and AI experimentation. Bhattacharya’s transition into tech management mirrored a broader pattern – the blurring traces between finance and expertise, particularly in an age the place buyer experiences are more and more digitised.
“The change doesn’t cease for anybody,” she mentioned. “You both trip the wave or get drowned by it.”
Her resolution to “trip the wave” has helped Salesforce India develop into a strategic digital associate to private and non-private sector purchasers, enabling every thing from digital citizen companies to AI-driven CRM options.
AI in India: A Defining Second of Augmentation
Arundhati believes that Synthetic Intelligence marks a transformative chapter for India, just like the arrival of the web. “Identical to the web modified the world, Synthetic Intelligence—or as some want, Augmented Intelligence—is poised to do the identical,” she mentioned. “It enhances and deepens the intelligence we already possess. It would essentially change how we work. Sure, there will likely be downsides, but when we use this instrument correctly, it may enormously enhance our lives and existence.”
Earlier than shifting ahead, the elephant within the room must be addressed. Will AI Steal Your Job? The brief reply is perhaps. However they’ll additionally create higher ones when you’re prepared. Synthetic Intelligence is the largest enterprise alternative of the subsequent decade. It’s already taking up handbook and repetitive duties, and shortly, it can begin enhancing human decision-making throughout industries.
In keeping with international forecasts, AI is predicted to contribute extra to the world financial system by 2030 than the present mixed GDP of China and India. That’s an enormous shift. With that sort of progress, there will likely be a wave of recent jobs, a lot of them higher, smarter, and extra fulfilling than those being phased out. The bottom line is Studying to work with AI, not in opposition to it.
Arundhati, too, acknowledged that disruption is a part of progress however emphasised that historical past gives perspective. “When motor automobiles got here in, horse carriages went out. However the reply is to not block change. The reply is to ability up.”
As NASSCOM tasks, 50% of India’s workforce would require re-skilling over the subsequent two years to satisfy the calls for of an AI-driven financial system. For Arundhati, the AI wave will not be about human redundancy, it is about human evolution.
AI as a Social Equaliser
India’s digital public infrastructure has develop into a power to reckon with. Over the previous decade, India’s JAM Trinity (Jan Dhan, Aadhaar, Cellular) has pushed a digital revolution targeted on monetary inclusion, transparency, and decreasing corruption. With over 54 crore Jan Dhan accounts, the muse for a financially linked India is strong.
The expansion of UPI is equally transformative, crossing ₹200 lakh crore in FY 2023-24, up 138% since 2017-18. Now operational in 7 nations, India accounts for over 40% of world real-time cost transactions. (Supply:PIB)
Arundhati sees AI as the subsequent layer in that transformation. “With Jan Dhan Yojana, cell penetration, and Aadhaar, we have been capable of deliver individuals from the farthest corners of the nation into the formal banking system.”
She invoked the imaginative and prescient of Dr. A.P.J. Abdul Kalam: a time when urban-quality companies attain rural India seamlessly. With AI-powered chatbots, healthcare diagnostics, and agri-advisory instruments now being piloted in native languages, this dream feels nearer than ever.
Agentic AI: The Subsequent Leap
Arundhati outlined three clear waves of AI:
- Predictive AI, like SBI’s Einstein engine, which personalised alerts and companies.
- Generative AI, which permits pure language understanding and creation.
- Agentic AI, the place digital brokers don’t simply suggest—they execute duties autonomously.
“We’re shifting from having a private secretary to let you know what to do, to somebody who really goes forward and does it for you.”
This subsequent leap may considerably enhance productiveness, decision-making, and entry, particularly for underserved segments.
The Highway Forward: Expertise, belief, and Inclusion
Regardless of the optimism, Arundhati emphasised accountable deployment. “Expertise must be inclusive. It’s no good if it solely helps the highest 5%.” Her name to motion is -Private and non-private sectors should collaborate to construct belief, guarantee moral AI practices, and democratise entry.
With India’s Digital India mission, Talent India program, and international partnerships round AI governance, the items are falling into place, however execution stays key.
India on the Crossroads of AI and Equality
Arundhati Bhattacharya’s journey is not only certainly one of private success. It mirrors India’s bigger ambition: to steer in tech, with out leaving anybody behind.
From a adorned profession in banking to shaping the AI narrative in India, she embodies a uncommon mix of imaginative and prescient and flexibility. “It is a nation of great expertise,” she mentioned. “And if we guarantee the precise skilling and the precise alternatives, AI generally is a nice equaliser.”
As India stands on the sting of a trillion-dollar AI alternative, her voice gives the readability we’d like: the longer term belongs to those that trip the wave, not resist it.
Disclaimer: It is a Mint editorial initiative, sponsored by Salesforce.
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