Balkanization of the internet, digital sovereignty, and data localization are some of the more popular terms that have come to define the debate on the future of data, and, more broadly, on the future of technology. Most governments around the world have not been able to develop norms or standards to govern emerging technologies. Even if national governments develop effective policies, harmonization of different national approaches at an international level is a bigger challenge.

With emerging technologies introducing new dimensions to diplomacy, Carnegie India, in collaboration with the Ministry of External Affairs, organized its 5th annual Global Technology Summit (GTS), themed the Geopolitics of Technology, from December 14 to 18, 2020.

The first virtual edition of the Summit brought together leading senior ministers and other government officials, expert practitioners, industry leaders, public policy professionals, entrepreneurs, civil society representatives, academics, and scholars from all over the world to deliberate on five sub-themes— Geopolitics of Technology: Technical Gets Political, Data: Linking the World, Digital Payments: The Future of Global Financial Highways, Digital Inclusion: Taking the Local to the Global, and Transforming Healthcare for a Post-COVID World.