India wants to offer a third way for global tech

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Roula Khalaf, Editor of the FT, selects her favourite stories in this weekly newsletter.

The writer is a fellow at Stanford University’s Institute for Human-Centered Artificial Intelligence and the Cyber Policy Center. She is the author of ‘The Tech Coup’

Europeans keen to escape the dark clouds of concern over the continent’s security may benefit from a trip to India, where optimism prevails. While some schadenfreude at the waning influence of former colonial powers is understandable (India’s foreign minister, S Jaishankar, recently told this newspaper that the virtues of the old world order were “exaggerated”) the prevailing sense of opportunity comes from within. Indians are optimistic not just because of the emergence of a multipolar world but also because of the country’s economic growth and technological advances.

In technology policy circles, the EU is often positioned as the “third way” — an alternative to the laissez-faire approach in America, where market forces steer tech development, and China’s state-controlled model, where technology is instrumentalised for political control. The EU’s rights-based regulatory approach offers a democracy-driven alternative. But India is keen to claim its own role offering an alternative to Chinese and American tech governance. After a decade of Digital India policies, this is well under way. 

Since its launch by Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s government in 2015, the Digital India initiative has delivered spectacular results. The uptake of digital identities, payment systems and internet access has steadily climbed, although a significant gender gap remains.

Nearly 6mn Indians work in the technology sector, and the country is now exporting its digital public infrastructure model to emerging economies. From Aadhaar, the world’s largest biometric ID system, to Unified Payments Interface, the payments network, Indian tech is gaining traction across the global south.

But there is a flip side. India also holds the dubious distinction of being the global leader in internet shutdowns — with more than 800 reported in the past decade. Critics argue that these shutdowns are human rights violations, as are restrictions to press freedom, digital rights and data privacy. Significant numbers of content moderation requests are made by the government itself. Elon Musk’s X is suing over what it considers illegal requests to censor content on the platform.

Against this backdrop, it was striking to see Joel Kaplan, Meta’s chief global affairs officer, take the stage at the Raisina Dialogue conference in Delhi this month.

Kaplan celebrated the virtues of US government support against perceived unfair treatment, particularly from the EU. He had less to say about India, despite Meta’s Facebook, Instagram and WhatsApp apps appearing at the top of user charts in India. Meta’s plan to relax content moderation and embrace far-reaching “free expression” is likely to have raised eyebrows from India’s ruling BJP. Content moderation has been a topic of confrontation between Meta and the Indian government but civil society has also criticised Meta for its concessions.

Whether the new US administration will help or complicate India’s role on the world stage remains undecided. While there are similarities between Modi and US President Donald Trump’s nationalist politics, the two may still end up clashing. India First and America First do not mix well. India also receives $33bn annually in remittances from Indians working in the US, many of whom could be directly affected by Trump’s immigration policies. This may have an impact on economic ties between the two nations.

Another potential pain point is Washington’s escalation of trade restrictions, such as the proposed 100 per cent tariffs on Brics nations. Hastily planned negotiations that aim to strike a trade deal ahead of the April 2 deadline leave little time for comprehensive talks. By way of comparison, the EU and India have been in on-off talks since 2007 without concluding a trade deal. 

Understanding how the shifting tectonic plates of global politics look from Delhi’s point of view is necessary and important for anyone trying to anticipate the future of geopolitics. And it is easy to conclude that there is nothing but momentum for India: warm ties between Trump and Modi, as well as the chance for India to rise as other nations decline.

But the jury remains out on whether the age of nationalist politics will benefit the Indian people. The narrative of India as a rising global power is compelling but it must ensure that its rule of law grows with the same ambition as its digital economy.