MAM
VML ES Hub India appoints Rakesh Chawla as CEO
MUMBAI: VML has named Rakesh Chawla as the new CEO of its Enterprise Solutions Hub in India, signalling a renewed push towards next generation technology, sharper delivery and accelerated client impact.
The ES Hub is one of VML’s fastest expanding technology engines and plays a central role in blending creativity with advanced engineering to solve complex business challenges. Chawla will now lead this mandate, ensuring clients benefit from high quality solutions built on emerging technologies including agentic and generative AI.
The Hub functions as a global centre of excellence, teaming up seamlessly with strategists, creatives and technologists across VML’s worldwide network. The aim is simple, help clients do more and do it faster.
Chawla brings deep experience from leadership stints at Microsoft, Amazon, Sears and IBM. His background in building high performing tech teams and establishing global delivery centres positions him to further strengthen the Hub’s reputation for speed, scale and a people-first engineering culture.
VML APAC CEO YiChung Tay said, clients can expect sharper access to cutting edge tech and creative thinking delivered with precision.
Rakesh Chawla added that he looks forward to helping clients innovate boldly and turn ambitious ideas into business results. APAC chief experience officer Symon Hammacott, highlighted that the Hub’s focus on people and innovation continues to help clients convert bold visions into measurable growth.
Digital
Google rolls out $15B AI, education and connectivity plan for India
AI tools for 11 million students, new subsea cables, and a national skilling push.
NEW DELHI: Google is backing its words with action. In a major push to future-proof the world’s most populous nation, Google DeepMind has partnered with the Indian government on a large-scale AI initiative.
Announced by CEO Sundar Pichai at the India AI Impact Summit, the deal is less of a gentle nudge and more of a full-throttle sprint into the digital age. Part of Google’s $15 billion commitment to South Asia, the plan aims to weave artificial intelligence into the very fabric of Indian daily life, from the deep ocean floor to the back of the classroom.
The most heart-warming slice of this digital pie is the focus on the next generation. Google is partnering with 10,000 Atal Tinkering Labs, effectively dropping high-tech AI tools into the laps of roughly 11 million students.
The goal? To introduce generative AI assistance in schools, ensuring that the homework of the future is powered by more than just caffeine and late-night panic.
While the kids are busy with AI in the classroom, Google is busy under the sea. The newly minted India-America Connect Initiative involves laying down serious hardware, specifically, new subsea cable routes.
These digital arteries will link India to Singapore, South Africa and Australia. By adding four more strategic fiber-optic routes connecting the U.S. to the Southern Hemisphere, Google is essentially building a “data superhighway” to ensure India’s AI capabilities don’t get stuck in traffic.
Knowing how to use a tool is just as important as owning it. To bridge the gap, Google is launching its most ambitious skilling program yet: the Google AI Professional Certificate. This program is designed to help the workforce master AI without needing a PhD in robotics.
With full-stack connectivity and a massive investment on the table, India isn’t just joining the AI race; it’s looking to set the pace.
