India’s Modi set to sit down with Mark Zuckerburg

Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi will sit down with Mark Zuckerberg on Sunday, and the pair will have plenty to talk about.

Modi is spending two days on the West Coast to take a closer look at what America’s red-hot tech industry is made of. He wants India to have its own Silicon Valley, hoping startups will create jobs and restart economic growth in the country.

At a townhall-style meeting at the Facebook headquarters, Modi and Zuckerberg are expected to discuss everything from cybersecurity to bringing Internet access to developing countries like India.

A live stream of the Q&A will be on Zuckerberg’s Facebook page. The event will start at 12:30 p.m. ET (9:30 a.m. PST).

Modi’s trip to the West Coast is a first for an Indian prime minister in 33 years.

On Saturday, he visited with Tesla Motors CEO Elon Musk and toured a Tesla facility. He even sat for a group photograph with Tesla employees of Indian origin.

Modi also met with Apple CEO Tim Cook and other top chief executives including Satya Nadella of Microsoft and Sundar Pichai of Google.

He gave a speech about Digital India, his initiative to improve technology and connectivity in his country.

“There may be still some who see the digital economy as the tool of the rich, educated and the privileged,” Modi said. “But, ask the taxi driver or the corner vendor in India what he has gained from his cell phone, and the debate gets settled.”

Exit mobile version