Commentary
Find our newspaper columns, blogs, and other commentary pieces in this section. Our research focuses on Advanced Biology, High-Tech Geopolitics, Strategic Studies, Indo-Pacific Studies & Economic Policy
Firstpost | Agentic AI: The next frontier in artificial intelligence
By Arindam Goswami
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
By Arindam Goswami
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
By Lokendra Sharma
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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Firstpost | How Trump’s tariffs can be opportunity in crisis for India
By Arindam Goswami
While Trump’s tariffs aren’t designed to help India, they may inadvertently provide the external catalyst needed for India’s economic transformation. Sometimes, the most valuable gifts come in the most unexpected packages.
The Donald Trump administration’s recent imposition of tariffs on Indian goods could have a silver lining if India can seize the opportunity. In conditions reminiscent of the 1991 crisis that opened up India’s economy, India could use this opportunity for its long-overdue economic transformation by fostering a more export-oriented economy. This is an opportunity to shift the domestic Overton window on protectionism, albeit under pressure.
By Arindam Goswami
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Indian Express | More delivery and payment apps will not make India a tech leader
By Arindam Goswami
While India celebrates its unicorn boom, a troubling innovation gap separates us from true technological leadership. Despite boasting of the world’s third-largest startup ecosystem and a massive pool of technical talent, India needs to do a lot more when it comes to cutting-edge DeepTech innovation. Its unicorns solve distribution problems rather than scientific ones. Its brightest minds build payment apps, not quantum computers. India’s venture capital flows to the next food delivery service, not fusion energy. This paradox demands explanation — and action.
By Arindam Goswami
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Moneycontrol | Lessons from China's support for local startups — a path to innovation for India
By Arindam Goswami
China's local governments drive innovation through fiscal autonomy, incentives, and policy experimentation. India can adopt similar reforms by enhancing fiscal power, creating innovation zones, and aligning municipal leaders’ incentives with startup growth to foster a competitive, innovative economy
By Arindam Goswami
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India’s World | Towards techno-strategic autonomy: India should spearhead an Open Technology Maitri
By Lokendra Sharma and Pranay Kotasthane
In face of supply chain warfare and security concerns, India should create an Open Technology Maitri, a multistakeholder initiative for realising the vision of techno-strategic autonomy by advancing legal and policy pathways for open tech deployment and uptake in developing countries.
By Lokendra Sharma and Pranay Kotasthane
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NDTV | Let 'Thermodynamics' Teach You Something About AI
By Arindam Goswami
As the Paris AI Action Summit 2025 descended into a cacophony of competing national interests and corporate agendas, it offered a perfect illustration of entropy in action: a system of global governance dissolving into disorder without sufficient organising energy to maintain coherence. This collapse of international cooperation on artificial intelligence (AI) standards reveals a fundamental truth applicable far beyond the diplomatic sphere: without intentional intervention, our AI ecosystems will naturally trend toward maximum chaos.
By Arindam Goswami
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The Hindu | AI infrastructure, the key to global AI supremacy
By Arindam Goswami
For countries such as India, the diverse approaches by lead AI players such as the U.S, the European Union and China offer lessons.
The United States has made a bold move in the global artificial intelligence (AI) race with its new federal AI infrastructure policy. What appears to be a domestic initiative to establish AI data centres across federal lands, is actually a well-thought-out strategy to maintain America’s technological supremacy in this field. Other countries have also developed their own AI infrastructure strategies to face this competition. India faces resource constraints. The challenge for India, therefore, lies in adopting a strategy which will work without the deep financial reserves of the U.S. or China.
By Arindam Goswami
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Moneycontrol | A framework for technological sovereignty without being insular
By Arindam Goswami
Technological sovereignty emphasises national control over critical technologies while balancing security, innovation, and international cooperation, avoiding corporate dominance and ensuring citizens' rights within a fair global technological framework
By Arindam Goswami
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Firstpost | Paris AI Summit: How Indo-French partnership can be a rule maker for future innovations
By Arindam Goswami
As co-chair of the AI Action Summit in Paris, India, under the prime ministership of Narendra Modi, has the opportunity to kickstart a new chapter in global technological cooperation. Artificial Intelligence (AI) has a pervasive impact across different sectors. In that sense, it is a general-purpose technology (GPT), to borrow the term from Jeffrey Ding’s GPT Diffusion Theory, which promises to reshape various sectors. Nations are grappling with both its enormous potential and inherent challenges. Now is the time to come together and collaborate on setting a strong foundation for the years to come.
With its considerable experience in building and running a vast digital public infrastructure, coupled with a workforce that has proven expertise in software development, India could become an important voice in the global AI discourse
By Arindam Goswami
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News18 | Opinion | Atal Innovation Mission: Building An Ecosystem For Technological Diffusion
By Arindam Goswami and Bhaskari J
AIM focuses on accelerating innovation; the path to that is not just via capturing first-mover advantage, but also by creating linkages to enable cross-sectoral adaptation of technologies
By Arindam Goswami and Bhaskari J
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The Hindu | India’s reliance on China for critical minerals
By Rakshith Shetty
Does China have unparalleled dominance in the critical minerals sector? How was it able to do so? What are the minerals for which India is heavily dependent on China? Why has India not been able to excavate the lithium reserves found in Jammu and Kashmir?
By Rakshith Shetty
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ThinkChina | Is India warming up to Chinese investment?
By Amit Kumar
China’s investments in India, historically underwhelming, have dropped further with India’s fears of China’s “opportunistic takeovers”, says Indian researcher Amit Kumar. But a more favourable Indian public discourse towards Chinese investments and the potential for win-win benefits could turn things around.
By Amit Kumar
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Money Control | India-China equation reset is at a new normal, not the old one
By Manoj Kewalramani
Power asymmetry between the two countries and the likelihood of just a limited easing in the trade relationship make going back to pre-2020 phase impossible. Moreover, there’s no evidence of a dialogue yet on next step towards de-escalation. Keep your fingers crossed and expectations contained
By Manoj Kewalramani
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Money Control | China-Taiwan Tensions: A shift in cross-Strait policy language
By Anushka Saxena
China's military exercises highlight regional tensions as Taiwan's President Lai Ching-te asserts sovereignty. His recent remarks signal a policy shift, encouraging potential cooperation with Beijing, despite ongoing tensions. Lai’s statements challenge China’s role as a peace broker in global conflicts.
By Anushka Saxena
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The Indian Express | India-China border agreement: Five reasons to be cautiously optimistic
By Manoj Kewalramani
The announcement is just the first step in a long process of normalisation of the situation along the boundary areas. For starters, the agreement needs to be implemented on the ground, with patrolling becoming normalised
By Manoj Kewalramani
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The Print | China benefits from US involvement in Ukraine & Gaza. India must tread carefully
By Lt Gen Prakash Menon
In the context of the ongoing geopolitical contestation between the West and China, keeping the US engaged in Ukraine and Gaza will only benefit Beijing in the long run.
By Lt Gen Prakash Menon
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NDTV | India And China May Finally Be Warming Up To Each Other
By Manoj Kewalramani
It's not a thaw yet, but there are certainly signs of some warming in the India-China relationship. Of late, there has been an uptick in dialogue to resolve outstanding issues along two friction points in Eastern Ladakh. At the same time, there is a fresh debate underway within India on economic engagement with China
By Manoj Kewalramani
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The Print | PM Modi’s Ukraine visit is not just about geopolitics. India wants to upgrade its warships
By Yusuf Unjhawala
As Modi and Zelenskyy discuss bilateral and multilateral cooperation, there is a strong possibility that they will explore ways to deepen industrial and defence ties.
By Yusuf Unjhawala
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