India’s World | In the face of Washington’s tech shenanigans, New Delhi should choose collaboration over autarky

We argue that in order to navigate tech geopolitics, India should learn from its historical experiences with technology denial regimes and double down on international tech collaboration to develop foundational strengths while it still can.

By Lokendra Sharma and Ashwin Prasad

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Moneycontrol | Brownfield mining operations are enough to meet India’s rare-earth needs

India does not need a maximalist mining push to meet its rare‑earth goals. A calibrated build via expansion of existing mining projects to roughly 20,000 tonnes of TREO is sufficient.

By Tannmay Kumarr Baid

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Moneycontrol | How Trump and Mastercard are pushing the global financial system to an inflection point

For more than a decade, cryptocurrencies have created a parallel decentralised payments architecture as opposed to the centralised global financial system dominated by select intermediaries. Trump’s championing of stablecoins along with Mastercard’s embrace of blockchain can lead to the convergence of disparate worlds.

By Lokendra Sharma

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South Asian Voices | How the United States and India can Promote Responsible Behavior in Cyberspace Through the Quad

Over the last few years, India and the United States have been at the receiving end of anything but responsible behavior in cyberspace by both state and non-state actors. From the Salt Typhoon campaign that compromised U.S. telecom networks in 2024 to the high-profile cyberattack on India’s All India Institute of Medical Sciences in 2022, cyber operations (including ransomware) have hardly left any sector untouched.

By Lokendra Sharma

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Moneycontrol | Reconfiguring supply chains in a world where trust’s eroding

Thinking about supply chains has moved from just-in-time to just-to-be secure following geopolitical turmoil. A risk-based framework for reconfiguring India’s supply chains can address security considerations without jeopardising the country's economic growth.

By Lokendra Sharma and Pranay Kotasthane

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The Hindu | Fathoming America’s plan to manage AI proliferation

The announcement by the United States of the rescission of its Framework for AI Diffusion, a set of export controls for Artificial Intelligence (AI) technology announced earlier this year, has been viewed as a good thing. The Framework was considered counterproductive to AI technology development and diplomatic relations. However, recent developments suggest that controls on AI are likely to persist, albeit in different forms.

By Ashwin Prasad, Bharath Reddy and Rijesh Panicker

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India’ World | The Way to Break China’s Stranglehold on Rare Earths

Donald Trump recently announced a new Rare Earth Element (REE) deal with China. As per the deal, China is set to lift its export controls on any REEs exported to the United States in exchange for exemptions granted to Chinese students amidst the president’s crackdown on immigrant student visas.

By Tannmay Kumarr Baid and Pranay Kotasthane

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StratNews Global | AI is not India’s Y2K Moment but it does Offer India a Leadership Role in the Global South

I argue that the AI race is not a Y2K moment for India. There are fundamental differences between the Y2K moment of yore and the ongoing AI saga. That said, India can still emerge as a leader in the Global South if it prioritises the development of open software and hardware associated with AI.

By Lokendra Sharma

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India’s World | Dissecting the Cyber Aspect of Operation Sindoor

While heightened cybersecurity alertness from both the government and the private sector has certainly helped, it is the cyber strength built over the years that has primarily ensured the resilience of the Indian cyber landscape.

By Lokendra Sharma and Karthik Bappanad

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Moneycontrol | India needs a new nuclear dream

Homi Bhabha’s three-stage nuclear dream of the 1950s has helped the country in indigenising PHWRs and developing nuclear weapons, but has not met the promise of limitless power through thorium utilisation. India needs a new nuclear dream that focuses on five areas — from doubling down on PHWRs to pursuing direct thorium utilisation, and drawing in the private sector by tweaking nuclear liability law

By Lokendra Sharma

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Moneycontrol | China's thorium reactor is a wake-up call for India

India should pursue direct thorium utilisation in parallel to the three-stage nuclear power programme as it’s only the first stage which has been mastered so far. Also, there’s a need to diversify reactor designs to complement the current set of pressurised heavy water reactors

By Lokendra Sharma

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The Hindu | India’s AI compute conundrum

The Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology announced the launch of a continuous empanelment process for AI compute providers, which allows firms to apply on an ongoing basis to supply AI compute and related services. While this may seem like a good move in the short term, the process impedes market dynamics and creates bureaucratic hurdles for both providers and users of compute infrastructure. Allowing markets to function freely and offer services that meet consumer needs is necessary for long-term sustainability.

By Rijesh Panicker & Bharath Reddy

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South Asian Futures Fellowship | Cybersecurity Cooperation in South Asia: Measures That Can Work In A Geopolitically Fraught Region

South Asia faces rising cyber threats and shared vulnerabilities, worsened by low cyber awareness and growing internet use. Despite the cross-border nature of these risks, regional cooperation remains limited due to political tensions. Drawing from EU and ASEAN models, two solutions are proposed: a joint regional mechanism for non-strategic cyber incidents and a consensus-based cyber advisory body.

By Lokendra Sharma

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India’s World | “It’s the economy, stupid”: Unpacking insights from Indian tech geopolitics survey

Although Bill Clinton may have never said it publicly, the maxim “it’s the economy, stupid” has often been associated with his successful 1992 presidential campaign against incumbent George H. W. Bush. The maxim highlighted the primacy of economic considerations for American voters. Three decades later, this phrase aptly captures how Indians believe the country should navigate high-tech geopolitics. According to the Takshashila Institution’s recently released report “Technopolitik: A Technology Geopolitics Survey,” economic considerations have a bearing on how Indians think about national power, supply chain security, the space sector, atmanirbharta (self-reliance), and tech talent migration.

By Lokendra Sharma and Avinash Shet

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Hindustan Times | Reimagine PMRF scheme to energise R&D ecosystem

By Avinash Shet

In this piece, I argue that PMRF is an initiative with potential but has limited reach. By involving industries in funding research spearheaded by government research labs and PSUs and ensuring balanced support across institutions, PMRF can evolve into a more effective tool. Integrating PMRF into the Ausandhan National Research Foundation (ANRF) could further enhance its impact and strengthen the research ecosystem.

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Moneycontrol | US’ cyber security strategy relegates Russian threat, makes China main target

The Trump administration has shown definitive signs of shuffling its hierarchy of threats. Russia, the focus during the last three presidencies, is no longer seen through the same lens. Resources are now being shifted to tackling China. It assumes salience in the backdrop of an intensifying US-China trade war

By Lokendra Sharma

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Deccan Herald | For India, a new frontier in satellite internet

In today’s information age, internet connectivity has emerged as a critical marker of development. The internet is at the heart of the globally connected economy and society, giving the means to transmit information from anywhere, to anywhere, in real-time. The digital economy runs on the internet. On that account, internet infrastructure becomes vital. Satellite internet infrastructure augments traditional internet’s reach and resilience.

By Ashwin Prasad

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Firstpost | Agentic AI: The next frontier in artificial intelligence

Agentic artificial intelligence follows the natural evolution of AI and a logical technological trajectory. These are new types of systems that can proactively identify problems, create plans, and execute complex tasks across digital environments with minimal human supervision. Regulatory response to these developments has to keep up.

By Arindam Goswami

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Moneycontrol | From Technological Rivalry to Global Governance: The path forward

The current geopolitical landscape is shaped by technological nationalism, driven by competition in AI and semiconductors. However, game theory and historical examples suggest that this phase will evolve into co-operative frameworks, balancing national interests with global technological cooperation

By Arindam Goswami

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Moneycontrol | Four takeaways from Raisina Dialogue on contemporary geopolitics

From Ukraine to information warfare, discussions at the Raisina Dialogue revealed insights about the shifts in contemporary geopolitics that India would do well to adapt to

By Lokendra Sharma

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