PM Modi offers alternative AI vision, positions India as bridge

The world of artificial intelligence is dominated by Big Tech. Across each layer of the AI ecosystem — from semiconductors to data centres and large language models — Silicon Valley holds a commanding lead. The manner in which this tech is being shaped and developed has raised uncomfortable questions. Some have called it digital colonialism, and compelling arguments are being made for developing alternative pathways. The India AI Impact Summit has framed this skewed power structure. Against this backdrop, Prime Minister Narendra Modi, in his speech at the summit, has offered an alternative vision, one that doesn’t look upon AI as a strategic asset or consider technology as confidential. Instead, this framework centres around open code and shared development. This vision can move the AI discourse forward.

The power of the young population and large market in the world’s largest democracy will undoubtedly play a big role in shaping new technologies. While the US is pushing countries, including India, to build their AI solutions on top of America’s AI stack, India is also trying to develop a resilient domestic AI ecosystem. This extends from chip making to building AI models. Alongside, India is entering into partnerships with key global players in the ecosystem — such as Google and Microsoft — which will lead to the transfer of both tech and capital. The right combination of policies, along with risk capital, human resources and physical infrastructure, can help create a conducive ecosystem. This could not only provide viable alternatives to Big Tech, but may also be necessary considering that the use cases for AI in India will, in part, require local development. AI solutions that are affordable and scalable, the Prime Minister underlined, can be exported to countries around the world, serving a global need. “Any AI model that succeeds in India can be deployed globally,” said PM Modi.

But for India to be a player at the AI high table, the constraints that hold back not only the development of a vibrant AI ecosystem in the country, but also the wider economy, will need to be tackled head on. Whether this means confronting the bureaucratic and administrative hurdles that hobble entrepreneurship and risk-taking, or the education/skill deficit that renders many unemployable, or the inefficient power distribution systems across large parts of the country, the challenge, as before, is to address the longstanding structural deficits. If it does so, in an increasingly fragmented world, where trade is being weaponised, and countries are battling for tech supremacy, India is well positioned to offer an alternative — and emerge as a bridge.