AI could double value of digital economy by 2025: Huawei
New Delhi, May 29: Artificial Intelligence (AI) could almost double the value of the global digital economy to $23 trillion by 2025 from $12.9 trillion in 2017, said a Huawei study on Tuesday.
However, a scarcity of AI talent worldwide threatens this growth, showed the study, Global Connectivity Index (GCI) 2018, which is now in its fifth year.
The digital economy accounted for 17.1 per cent of global GDP in 2017, it added.
The research suggests that governments worldwide need to re-think education for a future workplace redefined by AI and start building a healthy, collaborative, and open AI ecosystem to attract and retain competitive AI talent.
"We are now witnessing a paradigm shift initiated by AI," said Kevin Zhang, President of Huawei Corporate Marketing.
"According to the GCI study, advanced economies that saw growth from ICT development plateau are using Intelligent Connectivity to open new opportunities, while some developing economies are also finding ways to tap the new technology to speed up their own strategic growth plans," Zhang added.
The study found that industries are embedding AI in key enabling technologies -- broadband, data centres, Cloud, big data and IoT (Internet of Things) -- to turn connectivity into Intelligent Connectivity, unleashing innovation to propel a new wave of economic growth.
In 2018, the GCI broadened its research scope from 50 to 79 nations. For the first time, every nation in the Index saw GCI scores improve.
From 64 in 2017, India improved its ranking to 63 in the 2018 GCI Index which was topped by the US.
The GCI 2018 also discovered that to effectively deploy AI on a large scale, countries need three equally important components in place -- computing power, labelled data and algorithms.
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Centre spent Rs 76.13 lakh on print media ads for RSS centenary, reveals RTI
New Delhi: The Union Ministry of Culture allegedly spent Rs 76.13 lakh on print advertisements marking the 100-year celebrations of the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS), according to a Right to Information (RTI) reply.
The information was sought by RTI activist Ajay Basudev Bose, who filed an application seeking details on expenditure incurred by the ministry for advertisements commemorating the RSS centenary.
Bose shared a picture of the reply from the ministry on his official ‘X’ handle.
“It is informed that an amount of Rs 76,13,129 has been spent on advertisement given in various print media by the Ministry of Culture on the occasion of the completion of 100 years of RSS,” the government’s reply stated.
RTI reply shows Min of Culture Govt of India spent a Whopping Rs 76L,13K,129 on Advertisement in Print Media on occasion of 100 yrs of #RSS
— AJAY Basudev Bose (@AjayBos93388306) April 16, 2026
When Everyone knows RSS is Not Registered & Does not Pay any Tax is it justified to spend Tax Payers Money on such Private event??@RSSorg… pic.twitter.com/dW4IUtdNCg
Bose questioned the expenditure in the post X, “when Everyone knows RSS is Not Registered & Does not Pay any Tax is it justified to spend Tax Payers Money on such Private event??”
Reacting to the development, Karnataka’s IT-BT and Panchayat Raj Minister Priyank Kharge also criticised the spending.
In a post on X, he asked why public money was being used for what he described as a “private ideological project.”
"Modi Sarkar spent Rs 76,13,129 of public money on newspaper advertisements to celebrate 100 years of the RSS. Why is Government spending taxpayers money on an unregistered, non-tax-paying organisation to celebrate their centenary?," he added.
Why is public money being used to serve a private ideological project?
— Priyank Kharge / ಪ್ರಿಯಾಂಕ್ ಖರ್ಗೆ (@PriyankKharge) April 16, 2026
Modi Sarkar spent ₹76,13,129 of public money on newspaper advertisements to celebrate 100 years of the RSS.
Why is Government spending taxpayers money on an unregistered, non-tax-paying organisation to… pic.twitter.com/EoZ6Pim3IM
According to reports, the RSS describes itself as a volunteer-based organisation and has stated that it functions as a body of individuals rather than a registered entity.
Founded by Keshav Baliram Hedgewar in 1925, the organisation is marking its centenary year beginning from Vijaydashami in 2025, with the milestone observed on October 2.
