India is making significant strides in artificial intelligence (AI), with Union Minister Ashwini Vaishnaw announcing that it will develop its foundational AI model within the next few months. This plan forms part of a series of efforts to place India at the forefront of the AI revolution. Vaishnaw also revealed that 18,693 graphics processing units (GPUs) had been impaneled under a standard computing facility to help build the necessary infrastructure for AI development, per a Press Trust of India (PTI) report.
The minister highlighted that the initiative aligns with Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s vision of making modern technology accessible to everyone, ensuring that AI solutions are affordable and widely available. To address global privacy concerns, Vaishnaw assured that AI services, including those associated with DeepSeek, will be hosted on Indian servers, ensuring that data security remains in Indian hands.
Building a national AI infrastructure
Establishing a robust computing infrastructure underpins India’s ambition to create its own AI model. With the deployment of 18,000 GPUs, India is laying the foundation for an AI model designed to meet the country’s unique linguistic, economic, and social needs. Establishing AI data centers in Odisha will further strengthen this infrastructure, ensuring the government has the resources to drive AI innovation.
The IndiaAI mission, which received Cabinet approval in March 2024, is a key part of this push. With an outlay of Rs 10,371.92 crore, the mission aims to create a scalable AI computing ecosystem to support India’s rapidly growing AI startups and research community. The mission also fosters public-private partnerships that will drive AI research and development across the nation.
AI innovation for key sectors
A primary focus of India’s AI strategy is the development of models tailored to critical sectors such as healthcare, agriculture, and governance. Through the IndiaAI Innovation Centre, India aims to create large multimodal models (LMMs) that address sector-specific challenges, empowering AI-driven solutions in areas that directly impact the country’s development.
Another key initiative is the IndiaAI Datasets Platform, which will provide researchers and startups easy access to high-quality, non-personal datasets. This platform will accelerate AI innovations across industries, enabling businesses to develop applications that cater to India’s needs.
Public-private partnerships and the AI marketplace
The IndiaAI mission also plans to establish an AI marketplace offering AI as a service. This marketplace will include pre-trained models for Indian innovators to use in their projects. The platform aims to make AI more accessible and promote its adoption across industries, boosting India’s AI ecosystem.
Earlier this month, a Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology (MeitY) technical panel met with 13 companies that submitted bids to provide AI computing and cloud services for the IndiaAI Mission. This panel, including officials from MeitY, the National Informatics Centre (NIC), and several IITs, will select the right partners to drive the mission forward.
With these efforts, India is poised to become a global leader in AI, building a strong ecosystem that will support innovation and drive solutions tailored to the nation’s needs.