PM Modi meets prominent US CEOs: Who is he, what was discussed – Times of India

New Delhi: Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Thursday held a one-on-one meeting with the top five US Chief Executive Officers (CEOs) from various key sectors.
On his official visit to the US, the PM met the CEOs on his first day and discussed a range of topics ranging from drones to 5G, semiconductors and solar.
PM Modi encouraged them to increase their investments by highlighting the huge opportunities in India.
Here’s a look at the CEOs they met and what they discussed:
Qualcomm CEO Cristiano Amon
In his meeting with Qualcomm CEO Cristiano Amon, news agency ANI quoted sources as saying that India has scale for ambitious projects.
Amon expressed his enthusiasm to work with India on ambitious digital transformation programs including 5G, PM Vani and others. He also expressed interest in partnering with India to work in the field of semiconductors.

The PM also discussed about India’s new drone policy and asked Qualcomm to rely on Indian talent and start manufacturing with the benefit of Production Linked Incentive (PLI) scheme.
Qualcomm is an American multinational corporation that manufactures semiconductors, software and services related to wireless technology. The company has a large presence in India including research and development.
Cristiano Amon is the President and CEO of Qualcomm Incorporated, and also serves on the company’s board of directors. He took over as the CEO of the company on June 30 this year.
Prior to taking over as CEO, Amon was instrumental in leading Qualcomm’s 5G strategy as well as its acceleration and global roll out.
Adobe CEO Shantanu Narain
Indian American Shantanu Narain is the President and CEO of Adobe, one of the largest and most diversified software companies in the world.
As CEO, Shantanu has been responsible for transforming the company into an industry innovator by pioneering the cloud-based subscription model.
He joined the company in 1998 as Vice President and General Manager of Engineering Technology Group. Eventually, he became COO in 2005, CEO in 2007, and chairman of the board in 2017.
In his discussion with PM Modi, Shantanu lauded India’s efforts in fighting COVID-19 and especially in rapid immunization.

Adobe’s CEO expressed interest in contributing to the 75th anniversary of India’s independence. He also expressed his desire to bring videos, animations to every child of India.
They also discussed Adobe’s ongoing collaboration in India and future investment plans.
In addition, he also focused on India’s flagship program Digital India and the use of emerging technologies in areas such as health, education and R&D.
First Solar CEO Mark Widmar
First Solar has successfully commissioned 150 MW of utility-scale solar power to the grid in India and installed 1.8 GW of solar capacity in the country.
Earlier this year, it announced its intention to set up a new 3.3 GW facility in India. In such a situation, First Solar is contributing to India’s plans to increase solar power generation to 100 GW by 2022.
Mark Widmar joined the company in April 2011 as Chief Financial Officer (CFO) and also served as Chief Accounts Officer from February 2012-June 2015. He became the CEO of First Solar in July 2016.
In his meeting with PM Modi, Vidmar shared plans to use the PLI scheme to manufacture solar power devices with unique thin film technology; and integrating India into global supply chains.

During the meeting, Modi elaborated on India’s efforts to harness solar energy, including the ‘One World, One Sun and One Grid’ initiative and investment opportunities in the region, his office said in a tweet.
“He spoke about India’s renewable energy landscape, especially solar power potential and our target of generating 450 GW of electricity from renewable sources by 2030,” the ministry said.
General Atomics CEO Vivek Lallu
Indian American Vivek Lal became the CEO of General Atomics in June 2020.
In May 2018, he was appointed by the US government in Washington DC to the US Cabinet Secretary in a key advisory role to the Department of Transportation (involving entities such as the Federal Aviation Administration) for a two-year term, which operates in the US and Affects global aviation policies. and technologies.
On Thursday, PM Modi and Lal discussed India’s progress in drone technology, including path-breaking reforms and the PLI scheme, the PMO said in a tweet.

“They talked about strengthening the defense technology sector in India. Lal appreciated the recent policy changes to accelerate defense and emerging technology building and capacity building in India,” the Ministry of External Affairs said.
General Atomics, which opened its first office in India in 2018, is making a significant contribution to deepening Indo-US defense and security cooperation.
It is working with both governments in an effort to provide India with the latest systems and technologies that support national defence.
General Atomics has partnered with Indian companies to develop solutions for Indian defense as well as capacity building.
Blackstone CEO Stephen A. Schwarzman
Stephen Schwarzman is the CEO and co-founder of Blackstone, one of the world’s leading investment firms with $684 billion in assets under management.
Schwarzman has been involved in all phases of Blackstone’s development since its inception in 1985.
Interacting with PM Modi, Schwarzman discussed promising investment opportunities in India, including under the National Infrastructure Pipeline and the National Monetization Pipeline.
He briefed Modi about the ongoing projects of the New York-based Alternative Investment Management Company in India and his interest in further investments in the infrastructure and real estate sectors.

Blackstone, which started its operations in India in 2006 and has so far invested around $15 billion in various sectors including private equity, real estate, education, fashion, packaging and housing finance.
Blackstone Real Estate Fund is said to be the largest owner of commercial real estate in India.
The company was instrumental in launching India’s first real estate investment trust (REIT) along with its partner Embassy Group in 2019 and has since launched two REITs in the country.
(with inputs from agencies)