New Delhi: The Central Government is planning to float a proposal to build the Indian Foundational AI Model. Abhishek Singh, Additional Secretary in the Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology (MeitY), announced the plan at the inauguration of an AI Centre of Excellence in GIFT City, Gandhinagar. Singh also urged Indian startups and innovators to contribute to this initiative, highlighting the limitations of foreign foundational models. He explained that these models are predominantly trained on Western datasets, making them less suitable for Indian languages and scenarios.
Investment in BharatGen Project
The proposal follows the Centre’s earlier announcement of the BharatGen project, a multimodal large language model (LLM) designed to process diverse data types, including text, images, audio, and video. Singh emphasized the need for substantial investment and funding support to build a foundational AI model that aligns with India’s unique linguistic and cultural diversity.
Addressing AI Risks and Strengthening Infrastructure
Singh also addressed the challenges associated with AI, such as deepfakes and misinformation, and reaffirmed the government’s commitment to creating safe, ethical, and trustworthy AI systems. He added that India is actively involved in developing global AI governance guidelines and announced plans to set up 18,000 Graphic Processing Units (GPUs) under the IndiaAI Mission. This infrastructure aims to foster innovation among startups, researchers, and academicians.
A Strategic Leap Forward: APAC News Analysis
The push for indigenous AI development coincides with the rapid growth of India’s AI ecosystem. IT Minister Ashwini Vaishnaw recently declared that India is poised to become a global AI leader. With over 200 generative AI startups raising $1.2 billion between 2020 and 2024, the sector is projected to reach a $17 billion market opportunity by 2030.
The initiative reflects a strategic response to global AI dominance by Western entities. By aligning AI systems with its linguistic and cultural fabric, the country can not only cater to domestic needs but also position itself as a global innovator in AI. The proposed investments and regulatory frameworks could transform India into a hub for ethical and scalable AI solutions, creating immense economic and social value.
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