Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Saturday met Apple CEO Tim Cook at 7, Race Course Road and discussed various issues including Make in India and tapping the country’s young talent.
The head of the US-based Apple, which makes iconic iPhones and Mac computers, has already announced during this trip setting of an app development centre in Bengaluru and one for maps in Hyderabad.
Apple has just a 2% share of the smartphone market in India, one of the world’s fastest-growing smartphone markets. Here are six key takeaways from Tim Cook’s meeting with PM Modi
Apple’s future plans for India
Cook shared Apple’s future plans for India. He spoke of the possibilities of manufacturing and retailing in India. He appreciated the breadth of young talent in India, and said the youth have significant skills which Apple would like to tap.
He mentioned the immense potential for ‘app-development’ that exists in the country. He also elaborated on the Map Development Centre that Apple is setting up in Hyderabad. He appreciated the Prime Minister’s initiatives in ‘ease of doing business.’
Renewable Energy
Tim Cook appreciated the Prime Minister’s initiatives for renewable energy. He said Apple runs on 93 per cent renewable energy, and spoke of plans to move Apple’s entire supply chain to renewable energy.
Delegation members accompanying Cook also spoke of their experiences in rural Rajasthan, where several villages have recently been electrified, and women are being skilled to assemble and operate solar energy equipment. Both Cook and the Prime Minister shared some unique stories of entrepreneurship that they had come across in app-development and renewable energy.
Digital India
Prime Minister Modi explained his Digital India initiative, and identified three key objectives of Digital India as e-education, health and increasing farmers’ incomes. He sought support from Apple in furthering these objectives.
Digital India, a flagship program of PM Modi’s government, attempts to transform India into a digitally empowered society and knowledge economy through the use of information technology.
Cyber-security
Issues regarding cyber-security and data encryption also came up for discussion. PM encouraged Cook to help the global community to cope with the challenges of cyber-crime.
Narendra Modi Mobile App
Apple CEO Tim Cook also launched an updated version of the Narendra Modi Mobile App. The App contains a new feature ‘My Network’ that empowers citizens to contribute towards making a positive difference in society. This section will consist of thoughtful forums where App users can share your ideas, views and deliberate with a wide range of people. Several daily tasks would also be put in this section at a very regular basis.
The Prime Minister thanked Cook for this kind gesture. He added that he has found the ‘Narendra Modi Mobile App’ a very lively and enriching forum for ideas and thoughts from the people. He added that through the App he has been able to connect with so many people, across India and the world and keep abreast with their views. He urged people, particularly youngsters to download the App so that they can stay connected.
Apple CEO mesmerised by India
Cook talked about his visit to India, and said he had been received with great warmth. He spoke about his visit to different parts of the country, and his meetings with people including youth, business leaders, and film actors.
In particular, he mentioned his visit to the Siddhivinayak Temple in Mumbai, and watching a cricket match. The Prime Minister, appreciating Cook, said that in India, ‘seeing is believing’ and added that these experiences would definitely steer Apple CEO’s business decisions.