HYDERABAD: Stressing the need for collaboration between govts and IT companies for India’s youth to compete in the Artificial Intelligence (AI) sector, BRS Working President KT Rama Rao said AI would bring significant benefits in the future. During his ongoing visit to the USA, KTR met with representatives of IT companies in Dallas. Commenting on the current situation in the USA, KTR noted the potential for small and medium-sized IT companies to establish offshore centres in India. He assured that after returning to power in three years, the BRS govt would further expand and develop the IT industry.“The BRS govt earlier introduced, under KCR’s leadership, IT and IT-related policies for transforming Hyderabad into a landmark for IT in just nine years,” KTR said. He mentioned that revolutionary approaches in innovation and incubation led to unprecedented growth in Hyderabad’s IT sector.“In 2014, Hyderabad had only 3,23,000 IT jobs, but by the time BRS left office, this number rose to 10 lakh. Many globally renowned tech companies established their largest offices outside the USA in Hyderabad. Due to current global conditions, many tech companies are looking to set up offshore centres in India, with the IT industry potentially expanding to tier-2 cities. This post-COVID era showed that work can be done for any company from anywhere in the world,” KTR stated.The working president said the BRS regime gave top priority to IT industries and the expansion of the IT industry to tier-2 cities such as Khammam, Mahbubnagar, Nalgonda, Siddipet, Nizamabad, and Adilabad. The govt established IT hubs in 10 such cities, offering rent-free facilities in the first year, plug-and-play infrastructure, and various incentives. For instance, NTT Data, set up in Adilabad, is progressing remarkably with 500 IT professionals, he said.KTR pointed out that while multinational giants like Amazon and Google may not move to tier-2 cities, small and medium-sized IT companies can. He stressed that there are vast opportunities in India’s tier-2 cities, which have good rail and road connectivity, predicting remarkable developments in the next two decades. Quoting former US President John F. Kennedy, who said the USA became a wealthy nation by investing in highways, KTR urged the central and state govts to recognise the importance of infrastructure development for national progress. He called on investors to contribute to their motherland, stating that India’s youth are eagerly awaiting such opportunities.