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- Meta India VP Sandhya Devanathan is optimistic that AI will create new job opportunities in India, despite changing job roles.
- The Economic Survey in July highlighted potential challenges AI poses to India’s long-term growth, urging businesses to focus on AI augmenting rather than replacing labor.
- Meta views India as a key market, with growing engagement in Instagram Reels, WhatsApp, and AI tools, contributing to strong global revenue growth of 22% in the April-June quarter.
Meta India Vice President Sandhya Devanathan stated that India is set to gain significantly from the new job opportunities created by artificial intelligence (AI) growth. In an interview with PTI, Devanathan addressed the ongoing debate about AI’s impact on jobs, asserting her confidence that AI will bring new opportunities for India.
“I think it offers opportunities for new kinds of jobs to get created…jobs may change in terms of what they look like, but there will be new things that could end up coming up as a result of that (AI)…and it would lead to new opportunities for us as a country,” she said.
The Economic Survey in July cautioned about the potential challenges AI poses, stating that it could “create obstacles to maintaining high growth rates for India in the coming years and decades.” It also urged the corporate sector to “focus more on how AI can enhance labor rather than replace workers.”
Devanathan addressed regulations on AI, personal data protection, and competition in digital markets, expressing that Meta welcomes “progressive” frameworks. She stressed the importance of balancing user safety with innovation to ensure protection and growth in the digital space.
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Meta, the parent company of Facebook and Instagram, considers India one of its key global markets, with the growing popularity of features like Reels and business messaging driving significant growth. India leads in watch-time for Instagram Reels and ranks among the largest markets for WhatsApp worldwide. The country has also become the biggest user of Meta AI, the company’s AI-powered chatbot.
Globally, Meta’s revenue increased by 22% to USD 39.1 billion in the April to June quarter, surpassing expectations and projecting strong sales for the third quarter, fueled by robust global advertising demand.
