Delivering a compelling keynote at the Hyderabad CIO 200 Summit 2025, organised by the Global CIO Forum, Arvind Dharmapuri, Member of Parliament from Nizamabad, highlighted India’s remarkable journey over the past decade, underscoring how transformative governance, visionary leadership, and digital innovation have propelled the country onto the global stage.
Reflecting on the ten-year milestone of both the Global CIO Forum and the Indian government under Prime Minister Narendra Modi, Dharmapuri drew a parallel between technological leadership and national progress. “We are now in the 11th year of a transformative era that has nurtured a thriving ecosystem for both global giants and homegrown innovators,” he said.
India’s robust economic trajectory was a central theme. Dharmapuri noted that India attracted $710 billion in FDI between 2014 and 2024—nearly double the $418 billion received from 1947 to 2014. This investment came from 167 countries, a testament to global confidence in India’s market, leadership, and long-term potential.
This FDI has touched 61 sectors and reached 32 states and union territories, signaling a shift from metro-centric development to widespread, inclusive growth. “India is no longer driven by seven major cities. Today, even small towns are key contributors to our economic narrative,” he emphasized.
With over 1 billion people under the age of 35, Dharmapuri pointed out that India has the world’s youngest population, giving it a demographic advantage through 2070. “Our average age is just 29. This young, aspirational population is not just consuming digital services—they are creating the next wave of global innovation.”
He added that two-thirds of India’s GDP is driven by domestic demand, creating a self-sustaining growth model unmatched globally.
The MP highlighted the explosion of India’s startup ecosystem, which grew from just 452 recognized startups in 2016 to over 173,000 in 2025. In 2021 alone, India added a new unicorn every nine days, ranking it as the world’s third-largest unicorn ecosystem.
“India’s startup journey is not just a story of funding and scale. It’s a story of resilience, access, and empowerment,” Dharmapuri said, adding humorously, “We’ll know we’ve succeeded when an Indian mother proudly marries her child to a startup founder.”
He also applauded the success of initiatives like Digital India and UPI. Data consumption per person rose from 3.2 GB annually in 2014 to 250 GB in 2024—more than the US and China combined. UPI, live in 668 banks and seven countries, processed 130 billion transactions last year, accounting for 49% of the world’s real-time digital payments.
Addressing CIOs and business leaders in attendance, Dharmapuri described India’s commitment to becoming a global hub for innovation, technology, and inclusive development. “From energy to elections, from startups to smart governance, we are building a future-ready India. And we are inviting the world to build it with us.”
He closed his address with a message of collaboration: “The next decade will be driven by partnerships between government, business, and civil society. Together, we are creating a future where India is not only a participant in the global economy—but a leader.”
Incidentally, the Government of Telangana is implementing a three-pronged strategy to harness the power of artificial intelligence. This approach focuses on establishing vertical-specific Centres of Excellence (CoEs) in key sectors such as cybersecurity, semiconductors, and finance, aimed at driving deep tech innovation and accelerating growth across these critical industries.
Additionally, the state is committed to democratizing AI access by expanding innovation hubs to tier-2 and tier-3 cities, ensuring that the benefits of AI-driven development reach grassroots levels.
“The Global CIO Forum will play a crucial role in supporting this ambitious IT strategy by serving as a platform for collaboration and knowledge exchange between the public and private sectors,” said Tushar Sahoo, Founder of the Global CIO Forum.
