India leads the way towards technological evolution with a population of over 1.4 billion residents, and Google, the global tech giant gradually aligns its strategies towards tapping into the massive potentiality of this growing market. Google’s ambitions in India encompass various sectors, including developing affordable infrastructure for the Internet to enabling digital literacy to empower the country for its potential as a digital economy. This article delves into Google's India strategy, key business plans, and possible impact on the nation in digital aspects.
Google’s focus in India is steadily helping the country to become a digital hub. By 2023, India represented one of the fastest-growing internet markets globally, with over 700 million internet users. The number of users is expected to rise as the proliferation of smartphones and access to reasonably priced data are booming. However, even after this growth, a large swathe of India's population remains unserved in terms of digital access.
India is not only a market for Google’s products and services but also a fertile ground for developing new technologies and business models, aiming to deal with specific challenges thrown up by emerging economies. Sundar Pichai, the Chief Executive of Google, has constantly highlighted India in the global roadmap of Google for its sheer diversity, demographic fundamentals, and desire for digital adoption.
Recently, Google has signed a MoU with the Tamil Nadu government to establish AI startups, skilling, and industrial ecosystems, along with MSMEs. Earlier this year, it also signed a MoU with the Maharashtra government. Besides, Google has announced of launching a state-of-the-art AI excellence center at IIT (Indian Institute of Technology) Nagpur.
The leading plank of Google's India strategy is its partnership with Jio Platforms, part of the Reliance Industries conglomerate. The duo launched the JioPhone Next, an entry-level smartphone that runs on a new, optimized version of Android for first-time users. The partnership is committed to breaking barriers in smartphone ownership in India while taking mobile internet to a larger demography, especially in rural and semi-urban areas.
The JioPhone Next is being positioned as an entry point for millions of Indians into Google's ecosystem, including its collection of apps such as Google Search, YouTube, Google Maps, and, more importantly, the Play Store. By developing a device particularly meant for Indian users, Google seeks to capture the next billion internet users while strengthening its position within the country.
The FinTech revolution in India is rapidly emerging, and Google Pay is one of the key drivers to initiate its growth. In India, eight out of ten consumers use GPay, which is thrice more than in the US.
Its seamless and user-friendly interface has been instrumental in increasing the adoption of Google Pay, especially among the younger demographic and those living in Tier 2 and Tier 3 cities. Over the past five years, Indian users have been utilizing mobile POS payments, bringing 1.6 billion users by the year 2023. Secondly, it is highly proactive in expanding its bill payments for utilities, ticketing of trains and buses, and shopping online.
Besides, for merchants, a credit line powered by epayLater has been launched to meet capital requirements. Furthermore, Google says it will double its features to Google Pay and facilitate access to a wider range of financial services, including loans, savings, and insurance while aiming for easier accession in the rural markets.
In the cloud computing space, Google Cloud has risen as a strong competitor. Indian companies have only scaled up efforts to become digitally capable, while directly working with Indian businesses across manufacturing, finance, retail, and healthcare, and assisting them with cloud integration for improved operational efficiencies. The service is also expanding its presence of data centers in India to provide low-latency services and ensure data sovereignty.
In 2021, Google opened its new Google Cloud region in Delhi NCR to support businesses and customers in the way of digital transformation. Additionally, with AI-driven cloud services, Google envisions helping Indian enterprises adopt cutting-edge technologies for better decision-making and customer engagement. Recently Google Cloud has even joined forces with Axis My India to build a super-powered multilingual app, named ‘a’. The app aims to support consumers with awareness, accessibility, and utilization of government welfare schemes, along with healthcare benefits
Google's strategy in India will not only help to shape the country's digital landscape but it will initiate digital transformation. Attributing it to affordable devices, digital literacy, fintech, and cloud computing, Google is becoming popular among Indian citizens and businesses. Its partnership with Jio and building Google Pay are an integral part of its strategy while aiming for easier accession to rural areas. With continued investments in infrastructure, cloud services, and localized products, the role of Google in driving India's digital transformation will be significant and transformative.