IN the years ahead, technology will affect and change our lives even more than it has in the past. Last month, this column briefly covered many aspects. Given its pervasiveness and impact, we continue to look at technology this time as well. In the coming years, technology will be amongst the biggest drivers of the global economy. India is uniquely placed to leverage this in a big way and, while meeting its own special needs, to also claim a far bigger share in the global pie.
Amongst the fastest growing segments will be individualized health devices. While consumer-level blood sugar testing and blood pressure measuring devices have been in the market for a while, millions of oximeters were sold to households during the COVID-19 pandemic. Wearable health devices are already a common consumer item, with the “wrist-watch” of yore now as multi-functional as the mobile phone, and fast becoming as widespread. Amongst its functionalities is the measurement and display of a host of health parameters, which can also be transmitted to a doctor. With increasing sophistication in data analytics and artificial intelligence, a linked service provider can automatically send back personalized health advice based on the individual’s health indicators and history. With advances in technology and in health science, the capability of wearables will increase manifold, further spurring demand and sales. There is an increasing number of other tech-based health devices for individual, household or community use, each having considerable demand (some innovative devices were covered in Dr Raghunath Mashelkar’s article, Civil Society, March 2022). With the vast and fast-expanding domestic market, and the consequent economies of scale, India can easily become the global centre for manufacture of such devices. This could be as big a segment of the global economy as the mobile handsets segment is today. It is an opportunity which India must not miss.
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IN the years ahead, technology will affect and change our lives even more than it has in the past. Last month, this column briefly covered many aspects. Given its pervasiveness and impact, we continue to look at technology this time as well. In the coming years, technology will be amongst the biggest drivers of the global economy. India is uniquely placed to leverage this in a big way and, while meeting its own special needs, to also claim a far bigger share in the global pie.