Five pivotal ideas for India and the world at an inflection point: Amitabh Kant @HTLS2025

THe domain stands at a turn repoint. Geopolitical run afoul has escalated, merchandise has become a theatre of retaliation, climate shocks are intensifying, and the global economy is being reshaped by technologies that evolve faster than policy can respond. Institutions created in the mid-20th century are struggling to address 21st-century challenges. The result is a world where uncertainty has become structural. Amid this global turbulence, India stands out as a nation of stability and momentum. Over the past decade, India has moved from the ‘Fragile Five’ to becoming the world’s fastest-growing large economy, powered by structural reforms, digital public infrastructure, and a sustained focus on inclusive growth. This moment provides India not only an opportunity to rise, but an opportunity to lead. Five big ideas, equally global and national, can define the road ahead.Using AI to improve outcomes at scaleTechnology is the most potent force shaping global growth. Artificial intelligence (AI), semiconductors, quantum computing, biotech, and advanced materials will determine productivity, competitiveness, and national security. But technology improves lives only when it is designed to reach the last mile.India’s digital public infrastructure has demonstrated how technology can transform governance. Aadhaar, UPI, and DigiLocker have enabled 1.4 billion people to access digital identities, financial services, and other services. But the next leap must come from AI deployed for the public good. AI can dramatically accelerate progress in healthcare by supporting diagnostics, clinical decision support systems, and predictive analytics. In education, AI-driven personalised tutoring can bridge learning gaps, and help teachers with content, assessments, and remedial pathways. In agriculture, AI can improve yields, and in governance, AI can enhance service delivery and security.India’s approach of open protocols, open-source models, multilingual datasets, and interoperable platforms can serve as a model for the Global South. As AI becomes central to growth, the world will need governance frameworks centred on equity, inclusion, and access. India must champion this architecture of “technology for good.”A green industrial strategyFor the nations that are willing, climate change is an opportunity to build industries of the future and a deep source of competitive advantage. India has already emerged as a leader in green growth, and the next decade will see us become a global clean-tech powerhouse.India’s green industrial strategy rests on three pillars. First, it is generating clean energy at scale. India has added over 256 GW of non-fossil capacity, built the world’s largest solar park, and created round-the-clock renewable energy markets. The second pillar is building deep domestic manufacturing of clean-tech supply chains. India has moved from negligible solar manufacturing five years ago to a domestic module capacity pipeline of over 90 GW. Production-linked incentives for solar modules, advanced chemistry cells, electrolysers, and semiconductors are creating competitive clean-tech ecosystems and reducing import dependence. India is positioning itself to be a cost-leader in batteries, hydrogen electrolysers, and green-manufactured goods. The third pillar is to drive the rise of future industries, such as green hydrogen, green steel, sustainable aviation fuels, industrial electrification, and circular material systems. Hydrogen valleys in Gujarat and Odisha, green steel production pilots, and green ammonia export terminals signal India’s ambition to lead the world in hard-to-abate sectors.Financing this transition will require de-risking instruments, blended-finance platforms, and a robust green-bonds market, all supported by a clear taxonomy and modern disclosure systems. India’s message is clear: Clean energy must be scaled, costs must fall, technology must be shared, and development must remain central to the global climate agenda.The next big driver of growthEstimates peg that around 400 million more people will be making their way to cities in India by 2050. Technology is making services more tradable than ever. A world seeking productivity will increasingly turn to India’s services ecosystem. This is a generational opportunity. More and more Global Capability Centres (GCCs) are moving to India, with 1,800 already in existence. The demand for high-skill services will increase. To fully grasp this opportunity, our cities must be cleaned up and made livable.India must undertake deep, structural municipal reforms, making our cities cleaner, more efficient, and better governed. Air pollution must be tackled through electrified public transport and strict construction-dust norms. Solid waste management requires nationwide replication of successful models such as Indore’s. Affordable housing shortages demand higher floor space index and floor area ratio norms, density incentives, and transit-linked development.Above all, cities need empowered local governments, integrated planning, predictable revenue streams, digitised property records, and the full implementation of the 74th Constitutional Amendment.Giving the Global South a voiceToday, multilateralism is floundering, the UN Security Council remains in gridlock and the World Trade Organisation’s (WTO) dispute-settlement mechanism is non-functional. Commitments on climate finance and technology transfer remain unmet. India’s G20 presidency illustrated how global governance can be revitalised and made more inclusive by mainstreaming green development, DPI, and bringing the African Union into the G20.A reformed multilateral system must deliver four outcomes. First, global governance of AI and frontier technologies, as called for by Prime Minister Narendra Modi during the G20 Summit. Second, multilateralism must deliver a climate-finance architecture grounded in equity and long-term investment, as called for by India at various fora. Third, the representation and decision-making at multilateral institutions must reflect realities: 2/3rd of global growth will come from the Global South. Finally, trade for development must be realised through a functional WTO that restores predictability to international trade. For globalisation to survive, it must become more inclusive and development-centric.A new development modelPM Modi’s idea of a Global Development Compact at the Voice of the Global South Summit in 2024 offers a clear framework for how nations can pursue high growth with social justice. Its core principle is simple: Growth and targeted welfare are complementary, not contradictory. Economic growth creates prosperity; targeted welfare ensures that every citizen benefits from that growth; and together, they build a resilient society.The compact must rest on three pillars. First, growth should be enterprise-driven through regulatory reform, competitive markets, and investment in innovation. Second, welfare should be empowerment-oriented, such that it strengthens health, education, skills, women’s participation, and social protection for a changing labour market. Third, global cooperation to secure technology access, diversify supply chains, advance climate finance, and promote fair trade for the Global South. This model can guide not just India’s rise but also the world’s search for a new development paradigm.Forces of technology, climate, fragmentation, and demographics are reshaping the world. India enters this era with the confidence of a country that has already delivered transformation at scale. We can build an era defined not by disruption, but by shared prosperity.Amitabh Kant is chairperson, Fairfax Centre for Free Enterprise, senior advisor, Fairfax Financial Holdings & SMBC Bank, and serves on the boards of Larsen & Toubro, HCLTech & IndiGo. The views expressed are personal.