Nandan Nilekani's 4 tips for India's economy to hit $8 trn mark by 2035

India is set to become the most preferred initial public offering (IPO) market globally by 2035, according to Infosys co-founder Nandan Nilekani. Speaking at the ArkamVC event in Bengaluru on Wednesday, Nilekani said, "Companies want to come back and list here. People are coming back, ghar wapsi happening."  

 

Nilekani, known for his pivotal role in building Aadhaar, projected a sharp rise in the number of startups in the country. "We expect 1 million startups by 2035. Binary fission will happen — startups will lead to more startups," he said, according to NDTV Profit.

 

Outlining key factors for India's economic expansion, Nilekani spoke about the necessary "Big Unlocks" required to accelerate the country's growth rate from 6 per cent to 8 per cent and achieve an $8-trillion economy by 2035. "There are four unlocks for the future—technology, entrepreneurship, formalisation, capital," he said.  

 

 

On India's digital transformation, Nilekani highlighted the success of electronic toll payments and the DigiYatra initiative. "Today we have a single system of electronic toll payments. DigiYatra has helped 14 million passengers since December 22," he stated. He further pointed out that "India is also a single market for labours, which China isn't."   

  Nilekani on economic trends

Discussing regional economic trends, Nilekani observed disparities in state GDPs and fertility rates, adding that significant migration patterns were shaping the country's labour market. "Huge migration waves are happening through India's regions while income disparity is high," he noted.  

 

He also addressed challenges faced by small businesses, particularly their limited access to capital. "Small businesses can't grow because of lack of access to capital. We have to fix this to get our growth in a big way," he said.  

 

When asked about achieving an 8 per cent growth rate, Nilekani dismissed broad policy discussions in favour of targeted solutions. "This is not about broad policy recommendations. There are specific things that can be done. We changed the face of identity with Aadhaar," he said.    Nilekani on artificial intelligence

Turning to artificial intelligence, Nilekani highlighted the importance of open-source AI models for India's digital future. "Goals of open source AI models is to have enough data in Indian languages," he said. "This will create AI at scale... Same principle of high volume, low cost that DPI did should be followed in AI through open source models."  

 

He also highlighted AI's potential applications in agriculture and education. "How AI should be used for agriculture should be seen. Open agri network will apply AI at scale. AI should be used for education as well," he said.