Mr. Rajeev Chandrasekhar, the Minister of State for Electronics and Information Technology, has unveiled plans for the upcoming India AI program. Assuring exceptional funding and design, he envisions a shift in the startup ecosystem’s focus towards practical applications in governance, security, and agriculture. The potential launch date is speculated to be December 11, 2023, coinciding with the three-day Global Partnership on Artificial Intelligence (GPAI) summit in New Delhi.
Mr. Chandrasekhar’s participation in the AI Safety Summit 2023 resulted in the approval of “The Bletchley Declaration,” urging a comprehensive exploration of AI’s potential aligned with human intentions. The government’s AI strategy includes a robust computing infrastructure for startups to train models, curated dataset access, and initiatives to address challenges faced by Indian startups in selling to large organizations.
Anticipating a cybersecurity landscape shift, the minister identifies deep tech as pivotal for India’s startup growth. India’s digital economy, currently constituting 11.5% of GDP, is poised to reach 20% by 2026. The transformation from being a technology consumer to a global contributor is evident in India’s innovation ecosystem, driven by Digital Public Infrastructure and government digitization.
As India builds capabilities in semiconductors, Web3, artificial intelligence, high-performance computing, and cybersecurity, the vision of Digital India encompasses not only transforming lives but also establishing India as a producer and designer for the global digital economy.
