P Thiaga Rajan’s Post

I had the privilege of inaugurating the iMerit Automotive AI Centre of Excellence in Coimbatore on Monday in the presence of iMerit Technology founder and CEO Radha Ramaswami Basu. Addressing the press, I highlighted the proactive measures undertaken by our Hon'ble Chief Minister MK Stalin that have resulted in global companies coming to Tamil Nadu, and the ongoing, renewed efforts of our government in creating more IT office space through construction of IT parks, expediting projects like FinTech City and reclaiming unused land in ELCOT SEZs. There is an urgent and expansive demand from the tech sector that we are trying our best to meet. To offset the supply-demand mismatch in sought-after cities like Coimbatore, a large IT complex spanning three million square feet of world-class office space will be established at the ELCOT SEZ as announced by our CM. A detailed project plan for this IT complex will be prepared in the next two months. Our state is emerging as a key hub for global investments because we also have an incredible, unmatched talent pool--the highest number of graduates in the country, and a young, skilled workforce primarily made up of locals. As global companies seek alternatives to China as part of their de-risking policy , India—especially Tamil Nadu—is well-positioned to take advantage of this opportunity. Commenting on the panic about job losses due to AI, I remarked that the rapid growth of AI is still in its nascent stages, akin to a spoon-fed toddler, and it relies heavily on human input for data. In the next two decades AI, rather than diminishing jobs, will create far more jobs (data parsing and annotation) than job losses (routine clerical activity) as the tech landscape evolves. We are dedicated to positioning Tamil Nadu's youth at the forefront of these emerging technological opportunities.