Google, the internet giant have launched two new initiatives, on January 4, a digital training program named Digital Unlocked and a free website builder called Google My Business app. The have been aimed at empowering nearly 51 million small and medium businesses (SMB) in the country.

Sundar Pichai, Google CEO said while launching the two new initiatives in New Delhi, “The Internet is a powerful equalizer and we are motivated to bring the benefits of information and technology to as many people as possible. Building for everyone and making it available in the hands of as many people is at the heart and core of what we do. And we do this by investing in open ecosystems.”

Pichai said on the Digital Unlocked initiative, “The Internet and digital technology is going to be an engine of growth for the Indian economy. Today, anyone can become an entrepreneur, a developer, or a creator, but it is important that they have the right tools and skills to digitise. We believe that it is important for us to invest in training and equipping these individuals and small businesses to accelerate their journey of growth” .

Pichai visits IIT Kharagpur!

Under Digital Unlocked, Google holds 5,000 offline training workshops, in partnership with FICCI and the Indian School of Business, over the next three years across 40 cities. The online training has comprised a set of 90 self-paced video tutorials with sets of topics starting from building a web presence and driving online growth to reaching customers over mobile and video. The trainings will be certified by Google, Indian School of Business and FICCI.

The Internet giant has also launched a new mobile app, called Primer, which imparts similar digital training to businesses in an interactive manner. The app, which will be available on Android and iOS, works offline as well and will be available in English along with Hindi with Tamil, Telugu and Marathi versions coming shortly.

By Prakriti Neogi