The deputy CM said Bengaluru is home to over 22.6 million IT professionals, adding that no other city can match it in terms of talent and weather
Karnataka deputy chief minister DK Shivakumar
Karnataka deputy chief minister DK Shivakumar on April 28 underscored Bengaluru’s central role in shaping India’s tech future, saying global leaders prioritise visits to the city before heading to New Delhi.
“This is the city of future. The entire world is looking at India through Bengaluru,” the deputy chief minister said at the Network18 Future of Work Summit in Bengaluru.
Highlighting the city’s deep talent pool, Shivakumar said Bengaluru is home to over 22.6 million IT professionals, adding that no other city can match it in terms of talent and weather. However, he also flagged concerns around the impact of artificial intelligence on employment.
“AI may cut 50 percent of jobs in Bengaluru and different parts of the country,” Shivakumar said, calling it a major challenge.
The Congress leader also compared living costs with Mumbai, noting that real estate remains more affordable in Bengaluru. “In Mumbai rental space is $3.5, Bangaluru can manage within $1,” he said, adding that a new airport is expected to come up in the southern part of the city.
Karnataka industries minister MB Patil, meanwhile, reacted to Moneycontrol’s report that said global tech giant Nvidia has leased a 7.6 million square feet office space in Bengaluru, saying all the Fortune 500 companies are present and the chipmaker is one among them.
He also added that the state government has signed a big semiconductor project recently, without revealing the details. The industries minister also raised the concerns of job loss due to artificial intelligence.
“Nationally we are number one in service sector it. Now is the time we have to adopt to AI. We have the ecosystem and talent. There will be job losses,” Patil said at the Network18 Future of Work Summit in Bengaluru.