The Bay Area is renowned globally for its strong presence of technology giants, successful startups, and unmatched ability to capture venture capital investment. These factors have largely influenced and driven the Bay Area’s economic growth over the last decade, exemplified by its rapid GDP growth. Between 2015 and 2018, the Bay Area experienced a 5.9% compound annual growth rate in GDP – one of the highest growth rates among national economies, outpacing that of its peer U.S. cities. Home to many of the largest companies in the country based on market capitalization, the Bay Area’s innovation ecosystem has attracted talent from across the globe, heightening the region’s role as a global leader in innovation and entrepreneurship.

The use of automation was one of the trends that was accelerated by the pandemic. The adoption of Artificial Intelligence (AI) is not limited to businesses, but economies have also turned their focus on building up their AI capabilities as a means to augment growth. Developed economies like the U.S, China and EU countries are already in the race. Now, India too is set to join them. In the last couple of years, the Government of India established a Task Force on Artificial Intelligence and mandated the NITI Aayog to prepare a National strategy on AI with a view to leverage AI for inclusive growth. However, AI adoption remained at a nascent stage in India. India’s first Artificial Intelligence summit, Responsible AI for Social Empowerment (RAISE) 2020 has turned the possibility of AI adoption into an imminent reality.

China’s subsidy-aided rise to dominance in PV manufacturing has driven prices way down, but at the cost of undermining promising alternative technological pathways. Policymakers should adopt measures to sustain greater diversity in PV and similar technologies.

This publication stems from a simple observation: across the world, humanity navigates a digital revolution that upends life as we knew it. And yet, despite the near-universal impact of this revolution, the increased connectivity has resulted in misconnections.