Union Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman, currently on an 11-day visit to the US and Peru, held high-level discussions with top business leaders and venture capitalists in San Francisco on Monday, focusing on boosting India-US collaboration in emerging sectors such as technology, artificial intelligence, energy, and digital infrastructure.

Kicking off her US tour with an interaction with the Indian diaspora on Sunday, Sitharaman began the week with strategic engagements, including meetings with Anjney Midha, General Partner at Silicon Valley venture capital firm Andreessen Horowitz (a16z), and Raghu Raghuram, CEO of tech major VMware.

According to the Ministry of Finance, Sitharaman “discussed the remarkable transformation in technology space” that has taken place under the leadership of Prime Minister Narendra Modi. During her discussions, she encouraged both a16z and VMware to “explore collaboration across sectors” within the domain of artificial intelligence, particularly in key areas like education, healthcare, and AI Centres of Excellence.

The meetings aimed to strengthen bilateral investment ties and enhance India’s positioning as a global hub for technological innovation. Sitharaman emphasized India’s growing digital ecosystem and the government’s proactive policies that are creating fertile ground for global companies and investors.

The Finance Ministry posted on X, formerly Twitter, highlighting the conversations and shared interests in leveraging India's expanding AI and tech ecosystem. “She suggested that a16z and VMware may like to explore collaboration across sectors within the domain of AI,” the post stated.