India is rapidly advancing its artificial intelligence (AI) capabilities under the IndiaAI mission. The government aims to democratise AI development and use for societal benefit. The focus is on creating accountable, safe, fair, and privacy-respecting AI systems tailored to Indian contexts. This initiative supports sectors like healthcare, agriculture, education, climate, and governance.
Development of Foundational AI Models
India is building indigenous Large Language Models (LLMs) and smaller language models trained on Indian data. These models better understand local languages, dialects, and cultural nuances. Four startups—Sarvam AI, Soket AI, Gnani AI, and Gan AI—are developing foundation models with billions of parameters. These models will be open source to encourage innovation by other startups.
Compute Infrastructure and Access
The IndiaAI Compute Portal provides over 34,000 GPUs, including Nvidia H100, Intel Gaudi, and AMD MI300X, at subsidised rates. This infrastructure supports academia, startups, MSMEs, and government bodies in AI research and innovation. GPU access costs are roughly one-third of the global average, making advanced AI tools affordable.
AI Datasets and Platforms
AIKosh is a curated dataset platform offering over 1000 Indian datasets and 208 AI models. It covers health, agriculture, education, and more, with strong data privacy safeguards. Examples include farmer queries, geological data, and clinical imaging. Small AI models like text-to-speech in regional languages are also available.
AI Applications Across Sectors
IndiaAI funds 30 applications addressing public interest problems. In healthcare, AI aids early disease detection and eye screening. Agriculture benefits from AI-powered advisory tools and soil testing. Climate projects include flood mapping and disease outbreak prediction. Governance applications improve public service access and grievance redressal.
Support for AI Startups
The IndiaAI Startups Global programme helps Indian startups expand internationally, especially in Europe. Ten startups are training at Station F, Paris, focusing on responsible AI, cybersecurity, and privacy. Notable startups include PrivaSapien Technologies and Secure Blink.
Ensuring Safe and Trusted AI
The IndiaAI Safety Institute encourages AI safety and trust through collaboration among academia, industry, startups, and government. Eight projects target responsible AI themes like bias mitigation, privacy tools, AI governance, and deepfake detection. New projects on watermarking and ethical AI are underway.
Legal and Regulatory Framework
India employs a techno-legal approach combining laws and technology to regulate AI risks. The Information Technology Act, 2000, and the Bharatiya Nyay Sanhita, 2023, address cybercrimes, misinformation, and identity theft. The Digital Personal Data Protection Act, 2023, safeguards personal data with accountability for data handlers. The IT Rules, 2021, mandate intermediaries to act against misinformation and deepfakes with grievance redressal mechanisms.
Techno-Legal Innovation
India funds R&D at premier institutes like IITs to develop AI tools for privacy enhancement, deepfake detection, and cybersecurity. This approach balances innovation with safety. It ensures AI governance is backed by technical solutions alongside legislation.
Global Engagement
India is hosting the AI Impact Summit in 2026 and co-chairs the AI Action Summit. It plays a leadership role in global AI policy discussions, promoting responsible and inclusive AI development worldwide.
Questions for UPSC:
- Critically analyse the role of indigenous AI development in strengthening India’s technological sovereignty with suitable examples.
- Explain the importance of a techno-legal approach in regulating emerging technologies like Artificial Intelligence in India.
- What are the challenges and opportunities in applying AI to sectors such as healthcare and agriculture? Discuss with reference to India’s context.
- Comment on the significance of international collaboration in AI innovation and governance. How can India leverage such partnerships for national benefit?
