India’s vision focused on effective sustainable development: Vivek Mahajan

Excerpts:

1) With India leading the digital services sector globally, what prompted Fujitsu to open an R&D center in Bangalore? What kind of work is going on there?

India holds a leading position in the digital services sector globally and is also in a critical position of being home to a rich pool of technical talent. The presence of governing bodies that foster innovation and drive growth. These were some of the motivating factors for opening Fujitsu R&D center here in India.

Fujitsu Research of India Private Limited’s (FRIPL) activities are largely focused on manufacturing cutting edge technologies, innovations around AI, next generation processor development, network virtualization software for 5G and beyond, and research on quantum computing.

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2) Since many ICT companies are operating globally and Indian companies are leading from the front, why should people choose a Japanese firm – Fujitsu?

There is no doubt that Indian IT companies compete globally, some of which are at the forefront. However, Fujitsu also has a history of innovation in the field of ICT since 1935. We partner with organizations across all sectors to create digital solutions that overcome their business challenges.

Fujitsu’s R&D center in Bangalore, India is also focusing on AI, next-gen processors, network software and quantum software. The work Fujitsu does for our global customers – including the government and public sector – includes location-based information systems, high-performance computing and e-government solutions. In addition, we also provide a broad and deep set of solutions that can be deployed globally while building a ‘cleantech’ image in India.

3) Speaking about sustainability, especially in technology development and services, how do you see India on the global stage?

Technology leadership is the primary gateway here to achieve sustainable development, which is what India is doing. India’s approach to sustainability is focused on effective sustainable development. It covers various development schemes in social, clean energy, clean water and even sustainable agriculture. The Government of India has also committed itself to a bold goal of net zero emissions by 2070. Countries are also looking to India for ways to achieve their sustainability goals and reverse climate change.

4) AI-powered technologies have been making noise lately, especially ChatGPT and the like. How do you see this new technology in this field?

Yes, ChatGPT has caused a lot of disruption in the workplace and at home. The use cases and applications of Generative AI are increasing every day. There are many technologies like Human Sensing AI, Graph AI, Explainable AI, Digital Annealing, Blockchain which are or will eventually prove to be disruptive and ground-breaking in nature. All this technology has one thing in common, that is the powerful computing infrastructure required to support it all. All of these technologies require high-performance computing – and soon, quantum computing – to deliver a seamless, secure and lag-free experience.

5) Along with this, the news of data leakage through chatbot is also making headlines. According to you, how secure are chatbots when it comes to protecting data?

Generative AI is currently in its early stages. As we speak, new use cases are constantly being created and the underlying technology being updated and optimized. That said, new innovations will usually be followed by such incidents and potential cyber threats. Security breaches such as data leaks or misuse of generative AI are incidents that typically occur when a new technology is introduced to the public.

Every disruptive technology innovation needs to be thoroughly appraised with a robust cyber security strategy to prevent misuse, unauthorized access and compromise of user data and privacy. Our AI innovation platform, Fujitsu Kozuchi (codenamed) provides Trust by Design which we are working with top security research institutions such as Ben Gurion University in Israel.

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6) Fujitsu claims to be at the forefront of quantum computing research. However, looking into the future, what do you see the future of data centers looking like?

Quantum computers would dramatically speed up the process of discovery in many areas. It is one of the most exciting technological frontiers because of its transformative potential. In the near term, data center processing power will become highly commoditized. In fact, it’s already a reality, which Fujitsu is delivering under the name ‘Computing as a Service’.

In our research lab in India, we are now expanding our R&D team to build software for the world-leading 2nm processor called ‘Fujitsu-Monaka’ for the next generation data center. This processor will reduce power usage by 1/10 and make a significant contribution to a sustainable future.

7) Software as a Service (SaaS) is not new to India, and now your firm is pushing for Computing as a Service (CaaS). So, what is it, how does it work and how are you planning on going forward with it?

Access to high performance computing is expensive. CaaS lowers the barrier to entry by giving end-users such as freelance coders, CG artists and dev teams access to processing power in the public cloud as per their needs to meet their rapidly growing computing needs.

CaaS democratizes high-performance computing (and quantum computing) by providing a service for users to solve highly complex problems with AI and ML. CaaS also includes Fujitsu’s quantum-inspired digital annealer technology, the same computing technology at the heart of Fugaku – the world’s fastest supercomputer.

With CaaS, users will be able to harness advanced computing resources – otherwise available at prohibitive cost – to solve global problems such as distribution and logistics problem solving, disaster prediction and prevention, drug discovery, gene therapy and more .

8) Lastly, new technologies are being developed every day. What new tech trends do you see that may appear in the near future?

Without a doubt, organizations need to focus on sustainability if they want to achieve mid to long term growth. Digital transformation will turn into sustainability transformation as more organizations are starting to take notice. According to a survey commissioned by Fujitsu and conducted by Forrester Consulting, sustainability is valued more highly now than it was two years ago. For this, data and digital technologies are essential to create a beneficial impact on the environment, society and economies.