Qualcomm Announces Investment of $8.5 Million in India

Qualcomm has announced its plan to invest $8.5 million in India with an aim to expand its digital design initiatives in the country. 

The technology giant announced a challenge called "Design in India" two years ago, which had around four hundred participating members. During the announcement, the company also shortlisted three startups among the top ten participants who won a prize money of $100,000 each. 

During the event, also attended by the Union Minister for Law and Justice of India, Ravi Shankar Prasad; NASSCOM President R. Chandrashekhar; and John Han, Senior Vice President and GM, Qualcomm Technology Licensing said that the company is very passionate about innovation, which is evident in the large investments it has been making in risky research and development projects. He also added that the Prime Minister of India, Narendra Modi, has the full support of Qualcomm to help the Indian ecosystem become a digitally empowered society. 

The startups, which won the prizes, are iFuture Robotics, Uncanny Vision, and Carnot Technologies.

While speaking at the event, Prasad pointed out the ability of Indian youths to adapt to the changing technology world. He said that Indians are more desirous of technology now than ever before and that the country is ready for innovations in digital designs. He further asked young entrepreneurs to work more towards research including rural health and education and insisted on the need of more human resource in the area of research.

Speaking about the recent achievements, he mentioned Adhaar card's technological prowess which is now being admired globally. While explaining that the government is trying to create an ecosystem suitable for startups, he asked Qualcomm to make a chip which is integral to the Aadhaar itself.

Among the prize winner startups, 

• iFuture Robotics makes industrial automation robots which read environment data to move and deliver objects in warehouses reducing labor costs as well as human injuries from heavy machinery. 
• Uncanny Vision has created an intelligent surveillance camera which can solve security problems in places like ATMs. The camera uses machine learning to detect human actions for face and movement.
• Carnot technologies, a telematics startup for low-cost bikes, has created a machine that connects a bike to a user's smartphone. It is useful for the safety of a vehicle during emergency situations.

As a part of its plans, Qualcomm is looking to support companies in fields like payment methods, health, rural technology, agricultural technology, biometric, and more. The company also plans to launch a new Innovation lab in Hyderabad and expand its existing one in Bangalore.