India’s digital economy is expanding at breakneck speed. With nearly everyone online, the country aims to become a trillion-dollar digital powerhouse by 2025–26. In response to the COVID-19 pandemic, India launched the ‘Atmanirbhar Bharat’ initiative to promote self-reliance and reduce dependency on imports.
But, a contradiction persists. While India speaks of digital independence, its ecosystem is still dominated by Western tech giants. These companies control everything from search and social media to e-commerce and cloud infrastructure. The deeper they entrench themselves in our digital lives, the harder it becomes to define our own path.
A recent example is Bharti Airtel’s partnership with Perplexity, a US-based AI-powered search engine. Millions of Indians will now access its premium version for free. While it seems like a generous move, it once again reinforces our reliance on foreign innovation, with an Indian telecom company enabling external control over core digital services.
Indians have grown accustomed to free services, cheap data, and slick apps. But we rarely pause to consider the trade-off. What we’re giving up is control, data, and opportunity.
The invisible monopoly
Take search, for instance. As of mid-2025, Google holds about 97 percent of India’s search engine market. That’s not competition, it’s monopoly. Every query, map direction, or YouTube view passes through Google’s servers, powering its global AI and advertising empire with Indian data.
It doesn’t stop there. WhatsApp is India’s dominant messaging app with over 535 million daily users, its largest user base globally. Instagram and Facebook dominate social media. Amazon knows our shopping habits. These platforms aren’t just present in India, they’re embedded in daily life.
Indians spend roughly five hours a day on their phones, including half an hour on WhatsApp and nearly 40 minutes each on Instagram and Facebook. That’s enormous time and attention funneling into foreign apps that monetize us using the data we provide.
The true value of data
In 2025, Indians consume an average of 21.2 to 27.5 GB of mobile data monthly. With over a billion users, our digital activity generates around 2.5 quintillion bytes of data each day. This data, covering what we search, watch, buy, and say, yields deep behavioral insights that drive global tech profits.
Platforms like Facebook and Instagram register over a billion Indian interactions monthly. Some estimates suggest this data generates 10 to 15 billion dollars annually for foreign companies.
India’s Digital Personal Data Protection Act, 2023, introduced stricter norms and encouraged local data storage. But it still permits cross-border flows to ‘trusted countries’, leaving space for loopholes in enforcement.
Meanwhile, foreign firms are building data centers in India, but ownership and profits still often remain abroad.
Are we enabling our own dependence?
The Airtel–Perplexity partnership is part of a larger pattern. Jio’s early deal with Facebook, Airtel’s ties with Google, and Indian fintech startups depending on Amazon’s cloud services all reflect how Indian firms often act as gateways for foreign dominance.
Even homegrown innovations like the Unified Payments Interface (UPI), now handling over 18 billion transactions a month, are widely accessed through foreign apps like Google Pay. Despite being a world-leading system, a significant portion of its activity is mediated by external platforms.Indian tech firms have the talent and capability to build independent platforms, yet many prefer distributing foreign products. It’s faster, easier, and more profitable in the short term. But in the long run, this behavior entrenches dependence and trains the next generation to rely on external ecosystems. Indian developers and researchers often contribute to global platforms, but the intellectual property and revenue stay overseas.
Why not learn from China?
China, recognising the risks early, implemented clear rules. Foreign companies had to partner with locals, obey domestic laws, and compete with state-backed rivals. As a result, it built strong domestic alternatives, Baidu for search, WeChat for messaging, and Alibaba for e-commerce.
India, by contrast, embraced openness. While the Digital India initiative expanded access, it also accelerated foreign penetration. Regulatory delays, such as the years-long wait for a proper data protection law, allowed foreign players to entrench themselves. The version finally passed in 2023 was notably watered down.
While, the European Union has imposed billion-dollar fines on the same companies whose unchecked practices continue in India.
Economic consequences
India’s digital advertising market in 2025 is valued at around 7 to 8.4 billion dollars, with 70 to 75 percent going to Google and Meta. In essence, Indian businesses are paying US tech giants to access Indian audiences.
The dependency runs deep. Small businesses rely on Google Maps and reviews. Boutiques and startups depend on Meta’s advertising algorithms. Even kirana stores use Amazon or Shopify platforms to stay competitive. Most startups, celebrated as engines of growth, are built on platforms they don’t control. A single algorithm tweak by a foreign player can sink a business overnight.
We have handed over not just data, but strategic control of our digital economy.
Missed opportunities
India has the talent and ambition, but not the ecosystem to support it. Guruji.com, once a promising Indian search engine, was acquired and shut down. Paytm, which recently turned profitable, was overtaken by Google Pay despite its early lead.
These aren’t failures of innovation, but failures of vision, funding, and sustained support.
Other countries backed their digital champions. Russia has Yandex. South Korea has Naver. Sweden gave rise to Spotify. India had the same potential but chose convenience over control.
What we must ask now
The Airtel–Perplexity deal reflects a deeper issue. While other countries build their own AI ecosystems, India continues to adopt foreign tools. Each time we cheer a new Western platform, we must also ask what we are building ourselves.
This isn’t about banning foreign companies. It’s about creating space for Indian platforms to grow. It’s about investing in digital sovereignty, nurturing innovation, and making Atmanirbhar Bharat more than a slogan.
Strategic self-reliance in digital infrastructure is not just desirable, it is essential. Global tech giants are
doing smart business. The real question is, why are we helping them win so easily?