In the present era, data and information constitute actual power but the Indian establishment does not understand this. Indian-American author and founder of Infinity Foundation, Rajiv Malhotra said this while delivering the keynote address in the Valley of Words, the three-day international literature and arts festival which began in Dehradun on Friday.
Delivering his address on civilisation in the age of artificial intelligence, Malhotra said that considering the pros and cons of the situation, thinkers haven’t come to terms with tough issues. Artificial intelligence will optimise the pyramid of power and wealth. He said, “Today, data is power but the Indian establishment hasn’t understood the value of power, considering the control it is allowing the foreign digital companies to have here. They haven’t thought about what will happen when human skills become obsolete with rising role of AI. I predict that in about a decade, some private companies will be more powerful than countries because of their power to disrupt and influence the minds of people. When it comes to technology, I would say shame on Indian tech giants because there was a time where they were leading but the Chinese have overtaken us. The Chinese are smart- they invested their income to rise higher up the value chain, they invested in knowledge.”
Referring to population growth, he said that overpopulation could be seen as an epidemic and that India could be especially vulnerable to its effects. However, people do not want to discuss such issues. Referring to intellect and education he said, “In the Vedic ages the Purva Paksha was practiced- the clinical assessment of the other side. This practice kept us alert and we kept on revising. However, this is not the case anymore. Western social science models based on Indian data have been taught for long now in India. We need deep structural changes. Return to traditional Indian values is desirable but what has to be considered is whether it is possible considering the present scale. If you ask me about the political power of India now I would say it is good but not enough considering aspects like coalition and all. Our concepts need to be clarified. We need to understand the difference between Rashtra and Rajya. The Rashtra is much more than the state. We call the president the Rashtrapati but he should be referred to as the Rajyapati because a Rashtrapati would be delving on much more than the president does.”
He further said, “We need an Indian grand narrative. Ask any Indian about the nation and you will get five different versions. Ask anyone in USA, France, Britain, Japan, Russia or some other countries and you will get one answer irrespective of the ideology of the person replying. We need what I call the Vedic open architecture which is good for the world to follow as it has mutual respects and other aspects. On the other hand, secularism which denies religion will not work.”