Cabinet nod to India-US MoU on enhancing innovation ecosystems

In a move to significantly strengthen commercial opportunities in high-tech sector, India and the United States are set to enhance innovation ecosystems through an innovation handshake, the draft memorandum of understanding (MoU) for which was approved by the Union Cabinet chaired by Prime Minister Narendra Modi, on Friday.
The 5th India-US Commercial Dialogue held on 10 March, 2023 during the visit of US Secretary of Commerce Gina Raimondo saw the relaunch of the commercial dialogue between the two countries, which also included a new working group on talent, innovation and inclusive growth (TIIG) under the commercial dialogue. President Biden and Prime Minister Modi, had, in June 2023 in a joint statement, welcomed focused efforts to establish an “innovation handshake” that will connect the two sides’ dynamic startup ecosystems, address specific regulatory hurdles to cooperation, and promote innovation and job growth, particularly in critical and emerging technologies (iCET).
To formalise the cooperation and implement the guidance, a G2G MoU has been signed between India and the US on the ‘innovation handshake’ on 14 November, 2023 at San Francisco, USA. The scope of cooperation would include a series of India-US events, round tables with private sector, including hackathon and “open innovation” programmes, information sharing and other activities. The MoU also lays the groundwork for two future innovation handshake events scheduled to take place in India and the US in early 2024.