Drawing heavily from science fiction, Microsoft India chairman Bhaskar Pramanik listed the search for an inexhaustible source of energy and breaking the speed of light barrier as two goals that technology should help achieve.
“We are still using the internal combustion engine that was invented during the first phase of industrialisation.
Here there has not been much progress as we continue to use fossilised fuel that is limited,” he said.
“By now, we should have found thousands of habitable planets but we haven’t. Unless we do, we are stuck on Earth,” he added.
Mr. Pramanik was speaking on the first day of ISB Leadership Summit at the institute’s campus here on Saturday.
His keynote speech also touched up on Microsoft’s efforts in a Maharashtra village to make a social impact by corroborating with other technology service providers and the government.
Other speakers included Vipul Shah, chief operating officer of Reliance Petrochemicals, and Venkat Changavalli, Advisor to Uttar Pradesh government and former CEO of EMRI.