Latest news with #BikramSinghBedi
Economic Times
6 days ago
- Business
- Economic Times
Google's AI model Gemini 2.5 Flash to support local processing of data
Indian developers can now access Google's latest AI model Gemini 2.5 Flash, which will support processing of data locally in the company's data centres in Delhi and Mumbai, allowing them to develop solutions for regulated industries like banking and financial services and for low latency applications. This is part of broader efforts from Google as it continues to invest and grow its footprint in India, Google Cloud Asia Pacific vice-president Bikram Singh Bedi told ET on the sidelines of the Google I/O Connect event here on Wednesday. 'A key part of investments is partnerships, the local customers, with the local partners to drive things forward, as far as AI from Google and Google Cloud are concerned,' he said. The company is also working with enterprises and startups where it is seeing momentum. Speaking at the event, Preeti Lobana, country manager, Google India, said to build endearing companies, startups need to solve fundamental issues in areas such as healthcare, climate and sustainability using deep AI solutions. Building trust, privacy and security from day one is also key. Google has been expanding in the country in recent years. The US-based tech giant currently operates two data centres, in Mumbai and Delhi, and is reportedly in talks to acquire land in Mumbai for another data centre. Bedi did not respond to queries about expanding its data centre presence in is second largest in terms of active developers for Google. According to a report by Public First, the Indian app publishers earned Rs 4 lakh crore through Android and Google Play in is integrating Gemini 2.5 Pro with its developer studio Firebase, which will allow developers to use multimodal prompts. Its open-source AI model, Gemma 3, supports 140 languages, including six Indian startups Sarvam, Soket Labs and are using Gemma to build AI models for various use cases. Sarvam, for instance, has built a translation model using week, Google offered a one-year free subscription of Google AI Pro worth Rs 19,500 to students, where they will be able to access a suite of products including Gemini 2.5 Pro, Notebook LLM and video model Veo 3.
Time of India
6 days ago
- Business
- Time of India
Google's AI model Gemini 2.5 Flash to support local processing of data
Synopsis This is part of broader efforts from Google as it continues to invest and grow its footprint in India, Google Cloud Asia Pacific vice-president Bikram Singh Bedi told ET on the sidelines of the Google I/O Connect event here on Wednesday. 'A key part of investments is partnerships, the local customers, with the local partners to drive things forward, as far as AI from Google and Google Cloud are concerned,' he said.
Time of India
6 days ago
- Business
- Time of India
Gemini goes local as Google courts Indian developers
Bengaluru: When Indian developers previously queried Google's AI models, their requests travelled thousands of kilometres to servers in other countries before returning with responses. That status quo changed a bit when Google unveiled four announcements at its developer-focused I/O event in Bengaluru on Wednesday, with one of the announcements being the localisation of AI processing within India's borders. "Indian developers can now use the powerful AI capabilities of Gemini 2.5 Flash here in India," Bikram Singh Bedi, vice president of Google Cloud Asia Pacific, told TOI. "Processing will now be available in India, and this is going to be critical from a perspective of data residency as well as low latency." The announcement addresses two critical concerns for Indian businesses – data residency regulatory concerns and latency issues. Previously, queries to Google's AI models would route through servers in the US or other global regions, not anymore though. "Certain applications need low latency, especially the ones where you're looking for real-time responses," Bedi explained. You Can Also Check: Bengaluru AQI | Weather in Bengaluru | Bank Holidays in Bengaluru | Public Holidays in Bengaluru The importance of low latency becomes clear when considering real-world applications. by Taboola by Taboola Sponsored Links Sponsored Links Promoted Links Promoted Links You May Like This Could Be the Best Time to Trade Gold in 5 Years IC Markets Learn More Undo For video streaming services, even milliseconds of delay can mean the difference between smooth playback and frustrating buffering. Financial trading platforms require split-second responses, whilst customer service chatbots need immediate responses to maintain natural conversations. Manufacturing systems monitoring equipment breakdowns cannot afford delays that might result in costly production stoppages. The second major announcement centred on Firebase, Google's popular development platform. "We have deeply integrated the Gemini 2.5 Pro into our development platforms - both AI Studio and Firebase Studio," Bedi revealed. "Developers can now use multimodal prompts — video, image, speech, text — and they can build full-stack AI applications with AI-generated templates and powerful agentic features." The integration, Bedi said, allows developers to give simple prompts directly within the code editor to generate complete applications. Hardware constraints, a perennial concern for Indian developers targeting budget smartphones, formed the backdrop to announcement number three. Google unveiled Gemma 3, the newest member of its open-source family, and highlighted the Gemma 3n variant optimised for devices with as little as 2 giga byte of RAM. "Gemma 3 is significantly ahead of anything else out there and they're supporting 140 languages, including six Indian languages," Bedi said. Skills, rather than silicon, framed the final set piece. Last year's Gen AI Exchange programme—an online academy and hackathon series launched by Google and supported by the central govt—registered 270,000 learners and reached five million developers through satellite events. "Courses completed have topped thirty thousand, but that is only the warm-up," Bedi said, announcing a second edition hackathon that opens for entries next month. Winners will receive Google Cloud credits, mentoring, and a fast track to showcase their projects at next year's I/O. The exchange, launched first in India and now spreading worldwide, is designed to close what Google and other analysts peg as a severe skills gap across IT and security roles. According to Bedi, enterprises in India are rapidly adopting AI in a slew of different verticals. "Look at Federal Bank of India - they are leveraging our AI to improve customer service. They have this friendly AI personal assistant called Fedi," Bedi explained. "They are seeing a 25% rise in customer satisfaction and 50% saving in customer care cost." Mahindra & Mahindra is another example of a large Indian conglomerate leveraging AI in diverse ways, said Bedi. "They are using our Google Cloud Vertex AI platform for cutting-edge work in R&D, engineering, simulations, and manufacturing plants. They're looking at use cases like zero breakdown, energy consumption optimization, among others," Bedi said. Uttar Pradesh, Bedi said, is building an open agricultural network on Gemini "to put micro climate data and market prices in every farmer's pocket". Such examples, he argued, show that generative AI has moved from a curiosity to a basic requirement for organisations and state govts that want to stay competitive.
Entrepreneur
02-07-2025
- Business
- Entrepreneur
Sashikumar Sreedharan Named Google Cloud India Managing Director
Sreedharan brings over 30 years of experience in the technology industry. He most recently served as Chief Operating Officer for Google Cloud APAC, a position he took in September 2023. You're reading Entrepreneur India, an international franchise of Entrepreneur Media. Google Cloud has appointed Sashikumar Sreedharan as its new Managing Director for India. He replaces Bikram Singh Bedi, who led the company's India operations for over four years and will now take on strategic responsibilities within Google Cloud's Asia Pacific (APAC) division. Sreedharan brings over 30 years of experience in the technology industry. He most recently served as Chief Operating Officer for Google Cloud APAC, a position he took in September 2023. Before joining Google, he was Managing Director at Microsoft India for more than five years and has held leadership positions at SAP and IBM. "My time as COO for APAC has deeply affirmed my belief in Google Cloud's winning strategy and powerful AI-first platform," said Sreedharan, expressing enthusiasm about his new role. "I look forward to working closely with our customers, partners, and developer community in India to build transformative AI-driven solutions." In his new role, Sreedharan will lead Google Cloud's go-to-market operations in India. He will focus on supporting enterprise and digital-native businesses across the country. Karan Bajwa, President of Google Cloud Asia Pacific, said, "I want to thank Bikram who has been instrumental in driving Google Cloud's success in India till date. As Sashi takes on the leadership of our team in India, I'm confident he will further propel our organisation and our customers to their next phase of growth in this crucial market." Bajwa also highlighted Google Cloud's strengths: "With our deep AI heritage, cutting-edge technical infrastructure, and innovative solutions, Google Cloud is uniquely positioned to partner with Indian businesses and the public sector to harness AI's transformative power." Reflecting on his tenure, Bedi said, "I am immensely proud of the business that we have built with the support of my team, our customers and partners. I look forward to contributing to APAC's strategic priorities and watching India's continued success in this new chapter under Sashi's leadership."
Business Standard
03-06-2025
- Business
- Business Standard
Mystore Unveils Mystore Genie, an AI Agent Built On Google Cloud to Supercharge ONDC Network Buyer Journeys
PRNewswire Gurugram (Haryana) [India], June 3: Mystore®, the first ONDC Network-connected marketplace, has launched Mystore Genie, an advanced AI Agent designed to transform how buyers discover and shop for products on the open network. Built on Google Cloud's Agentic AI framework, Mystore Genie empowers buyers with intuitive, conversational voice and text search capabilities that drive precise product discovery, making ordering easier and enabling sellers and brands to increase conversions through better product match accuracy. Unlike a generic chatbot, Mystore Genie goes beyond simple query handling. It leverages AI to understand search commands and user intent, delivering highly relevant, context-aware results in real time. This seamless conversational experience simplifies product discovery for buyers while boosting visibility and sales for sellers across the ONDC network. Mystore Genie's agentic capabilities also open new possibilities for enterprise brands across industries. This powerful AI model can be tailored into a sector-specific AI Agent for domains such as agriculture, banking, FMCG, automotive, and service-based industries, helping enterprises build intelligent digital touchpoints for enhanced customer engagement and operational efficiency. For a diverse country like India, with vast aspirational markets in Tier II-III cities and millions of first-time digital users, Mystore Genie can be a game-changing solution that simplifies product discovery for those less familiar with traditional internet search. Here's how Mystore's AI Agent, Mystore Genie, adds value to ONDC Network-connected brands and buyers: * Delivers intelligent, conversational product search that accurately matches buyer intent to available products. * Enhances buyer experience with a natural, interactive chat interface with product images and pricing that drives faster decisions and higher engagement. * Reduces friction in ordering by simplifying product discovery and narrowing results based on context and preferences. * Supports voice commands for adding to cart, changing address and placing purchases instantly. * Increases conversions by showing granularly matched results, improving product visibility for sellers. * Built on the Gemini Agentic AI framework by Google, offers a robust and scalable conversational AI backbone. * It can be customised into dedicated Agents for diverse sectors and help brands reach target audiences better for sectors like AgriTech, Banking, Retail, Services, and more, enabling smart, domain-specific automation. "We have entered the Agentic AI era, and I am enthusiastic about the innovative applications our customers are developing and utilising with our AI models. Our partnership with ONDC and Mystore will significantly improve the interaction between buyers and sellers on the ONDC platform, ultimately expanding access to technology for Indians nationwide," said Mr. Bikram Singh Bedi, Vice President and Country MD at Google Cloud India. Highlighting the future-ready potential of Mystore Genie, Mr. Rajiv Kumar Aggarwal, CEO & Founder, Mystore, said, "We are at the cusp of a generational shift where AI will fundamentally redefine how commerce is discovered, accessed, and experienced. With Mystore Genie, built on Google Cloud's Agentic AI framework, we are not just enhancing search, we are reimagining digital interaction for a billion-plus population. This marks the beginning of truly inclusive, conversational commerce for India's vast aspirational and underserved markets. In the coming years, intelligent, sector-specific agents like Mystore Genie will become the primary digital interface across industries, bridging the digital divide, driving economic participation and shaping the next era of growth for enterprises." About Mystore Mystore® is an ONDC-connected marketplace that offers an unparalleled Ecommerce Ecosystem, enabling Enterprises and SMEs to leverage the ONDC network to accelerate their growth. Mystore specialises in setting up dealer-network-based Quick Commerce Marketplaces for brands in record time. With its AI-enabled ecommerce solutions for smart selling (using Mystore Seller App) and buying (through the Mystore Buyer App), Mystore empowers businesses to enhance discoverability, personalise experiences, and drive growth through the ONDC Network. Mystore's cutting-edge ecommerce solutions are built on MystoreNEXT (formerly StoreHippo®) - the leading enterprise ecommerce platform powering top enterprise brands across the globe for 10 years. Mystore enables hyperlocal businesses, SMEs, D2C brands, and Enterprises to join the ONDC Network ecosystem and explore the vast Indian markets. Proudly Made in Bharat and Built for Bharat, Mystore champions inclusivity by enabling regional sellers, local businesses, and digitally underserved communities to participate meaningfully in the Indian ecommerce ecosystem. Built on next-gen technology, PCI-DSS, SOC2, and ISO/IEC 27001 compliant, Mystore offers a level-playing field and 360-degree ecommerce solutions to businesses irrespective of their size and industry vertical. About ONDC: Incorporated on 31st December 2021, Open Network for Digital Commerce (ONDC), a Section 8 company, is an initiative of the Department for Promotion of Industry and Internal Trade (DPIIT), Ministry of Commerce and Industry, Government of India to create a facilitative model that revolutionizes digital commerce, giving greater thrust to penetration of retail e-commerce in India. ONDC is not an application, platform, intermediary, or software but a set of specifications designed to foster open, unbundled, and interoperable Open Networks. Logo:
