The race for the world’s most powerful, and perhaps the most responsible role has come to an end. Joe Biden, the Democrat leader, will be inaugurated as the 46th president on January 20, 2021.
Joe Biden’s victory and the return of liberal Democrats to power in the US has brought an overall optimism to the Indian IT industry and the global tech industry at large. Indian IT sector has welcomed the change with open arms for obvious reasons.
The last few years have been quite unpredictable and challenging for the Indian IT services sector, primarily due to the outgoing president Donald Trump’s policies around H1B visas and other immigration issues. The Indian IT services industry has traditionally been dependent largely on the US market, with close to 60% of the revenues of the top Indian IT services firms being contributed by this market. The Biden administration is expected to be less hostile and more liberal with immigrant policies, which, if it happens, will be a great boon for Indian tech firms.
What does Joe Biden’s win mean for the Indian IT Industry ?
Will Biden reverse Trump’s immigration policies?
India has been an important contributor of high-skilled talent—especially STEM (science, technology, engineering and mathematics) talent—for the global market. Trump administration’s strict visa regime led to a backlash across the globe as it further worsened the skill shortage challenge in US. In fact, it was not just the Indian IT firms that expressed concern over this move. Many US-based tech giants –including Amazon, Microsoft, Netflix, Facebook and Twitter—said that Trump’s move could damage IT firms and impact the delivery of new products/services. It indeed questioned Indian tech industry’s decade-old ‘talent model’.
All of that is expected to change now—sooner or later. Indian firms and industry experts have been quite vocal about their optimism and how the leadership change in US would turn out to be a positive development for the industry.
“NASSCOM congratulates US #PresidentElect @JoeBiden on his win. We look forward to working with him and his administration in pivoting technology, skills and digital transformation for the United States,” tweeted the apex body right after Biden has been announced the president-elect.
NASSCOM congratulates US #PresidentElect @JoeBiden on his win. We look forward to working with him and his administration in pivoting technology, skills and digital transformation for the United States. https://t.co/AVyWXHJwYg
— NASSCOM (@nasscom) November 8, 2020
Silicon Valley firms are equally hopeful that Biden’s relaxed policies will help them effectively address the skills gap—which is a growing concern for all big tech companies.
More than the policy change, Biden’s victory has brought in the much-needed morale booster for the tech industry globally. We are going through a time when Covid-19 has completely reshuffled the deck and technology has been considered as the biggest shot in the arm. Liberal policies that promote unrestrained talent flow and knowledge sharing beyond the geographical boundaries have never been more important.
Tech in the Biden era – Biden’s presidency and its impact on Global Tech
For the global tech industry broadly, Biden administration’s policies and approach are expected to bring many positive changes. These include improved collaboration at the global level to address challenges and opportunities around cyber security, AI, Robotics and tech-enabled climate change solutions.
Biden’s stand towards trade tariffs is another area that the global tech community is eagerly watching. While Biden may not completely reverse Trump’s Trade War against China, it has been said that Biden will likely have more lenient approach. Trump’s Huawei ban, for example, has had a ripple effect in the global tech industry with sales of US suppliers like Qualcomm, Broadcom, Microsoft and Google predicted to take a hit.
Why Biden’s Victory Bodes Well For The Tech World ?
The new administration’s decisions around antitrust and net neutrality are something that the tech world is waiting to see. At the same time, the Biden-Harris administration will likely take a pro-tech approach, and pave way for better opportunities for startups and more matured discussions around data protection/privacy and a brighter roadmap for emerging technologies like AI.
All in all, the next four years of Biden era will likely present new windows of opportunity to the tech world.
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