The Big Picture Crowdsource Innovation 4IR technologies are seen are torchbearers of innovation, but they need to be deployed with social responsibility in mind. 4IR technologies have helped to revolutionise the delivery of health services to remote areas of India. The implementation of 4IR technologies requires a collective effort from multiple stakeholders, by involving these stakeholders in the development and deployment of these technologies we can harness their potential for creating social impact. Let’s go back to 1995. That was the year that saw the launch of India’s first commercialised TCP/IP-connected internet service hosted by a government-owned enterprise. A year later, the country had its first .com portal, offering free email services and an online electronics marketplace. As India’s telecom sector deregulated, by the year 2000, the country had around 315 internet service providers and around 366,000 internet subscribers. The decade after this witnessed explosive growth in IT and the software sector rose up the value chain. This sequence of events resulted in India’s prominence and competitiveness as the world’s office. India played a facilitative role at the centre and subnational level to ensure global needs were responded to, whether through the systematic development of IT parks or educational […]