Apple has a unique relationship with India as its founder Steve Jobs went to India for inspiration, Apple CEO Tim Cook has said in a meeting with Prime Minister Narendra Modi.
Mr. Cook said, "India has a special place in the heart of every Apple employee for the simple reason that Steve Jobs, when he was young man went to India for inspiration and it was what he saw in India that infused in him the desire to create Apple," according to the Ministry of External Affairs Spokesman Vikas Swarup.
Mr. Cook also highlighted to Mr. Modi the enormous impact that the app-development economy could have in India, particularly for entrepreneurship, where individual app developers could become self-made entrepreneurs. In citing this Mr. Cook mentioned the example of China where, he said, Apple had created 15 lakh jobs.
From Apple’s viewpoint, there is already a lot of design innovation happening in India, Indian Ambassador to the U.S. Arun Singh noted, adding that as Apple expands its reach in India in the longer term, there would be an enhanced opportunity for app development related to Apple platforms, and this would be an important part of the Digital India strategy.
Valuable interaction with >@tim_cook on a wide range of issues. >pic.twitter.com/hpZlCtfioG
— Narendra Modi (@narendramodi) >September 27, 2015PTI adds:
“We have a unique tie with India. Our founder Steve Jobs went to India for inspiration,” External Affairs Ministry spokesperson Vikas Swarup quoted Cook as saying on Saturday.
Mr. Cook, who met Mr. Modi at his hotel, was among the first top CEOs to meet the premier on the first day of his arrival.
“Dialling India for Digital,” Mr. Swarup added.
“My meeting with Prime Minister Narendra Modi was terrific,” Mr. Cook said after the meeting.
