Digital transformation to add $154 bn to India's GDP by 2021: Microsoft India president

New Delhi: Digital transformation in the country is expected to contribute about $154 billion to India’s GDP by 2021, tech giant Microsoft on Wednesday said. The study by Microsoft and IDC, titled “Unlocking the economic impact of digital transformation in Asia Pacific", said there has been a dramatic acceleration in the pace of digital transformation across India and Asia-Pacific economies. [caption id=“attachment_3999405” align=“alignleft” width=“380”] Digital transformation to add $154 bn to India’s GDP by 2021: Microsoft India president. Reuters image.[/caption] “In 2017, about 4 percent of India’s GDP was derived from digital products and services created directly through the use of digital technologies like mobility, cloud, internet of things (IoT), and artificial intelligence (AI),” Microsoft India President Anant Maheshwari told reporters here. He added that within the next four years, it is estimated that nearly 60 percent of India’s GDP will have a strong connection to the digital transformation trends. “India is clearly on the digital transformation fast track. Organisations are increasingly deploying emerging technologies such as AI, and that will accelerate digital transformation-led growth even further,” he said. The study conducted with 1,560 respondents from mid and large-sized organisations across 15 economies. The report found that digital transformation efforts for organisations range between 11 percent and 14 percent. “Business leaders expect to see more than 40 percent improvements in key areas by 2020, with the biggest jump expected in productivity, customer advocacy as well as profit margin,” Maheshwari said.