IndiaAI 2023

The Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology has made seven expert working groups, to brainstorm on the vision, objectives, outcomes, and design for each of IndiaAI's pillars, which has submitted its first edition report.

• The working groups detailed out the operational aspects of establishing Centers of Excellence (CoEs), and the institutional framework on governing data collection, management, processing and storage by the National Data Management Office (NDMO).
• The Working groups gave recommendation advocating the PPP model that would be leveraged to build so-called “GPU clusters”.

• These clusters would be made available to Indian start-ups and researchers.
• India AI initiative will be applied to areas like “agriculture, healthcare, education, fintech, security, and governance”.
• India Dataset Platform, a planned “collection which will be among the largest and most diverse collections of anonymised datasets for Indian researchers and startups to train their multi-parameter models” will be required.
• Propose a National Strategy on Robotics:
• The draft strategy recommends fiscal interventions to facilitate local manufacturing of robotics hardware, building of ‘demonstration facilities’ to test and show off technologies, and building capacity in the robotics sector.
• Draft National Strategy on Robotics was circulated for public input in September.

What is Artifical Intelligence?

• Artificial Intelligence (AI) is a branch of computer science that involves developing intelligent machines that can perform tasks that typically require human-like intelligence, such as visual perception, speech recognition, decision-making, and language translation.
• AI technologies are designed to learn, reason, and self-correct, making them highly useful for automating routine tasks, solving complex problems, and optimizing decision-making processes

Semiconductors and AI:

• The semiconductor market has, for most of the last decade, seen much of its profits tied to the smartphone and mobile device market.
• As the smartphone market begins to plateau, the semiconductor industry must find other growth opportunities.
• AI applications, especially in the big data, autonomous vehicles, and industrial robotics industries, can provide those opportunities.
• By defining and then putting together their AI strategies now, semiconductor manufacturers can position themselves to take full advantage of the spreading AI market.

Recent Interventions:

• INDIAai, a knowledge portal and research organization in India's AI ecosystem, has partnered with Meta India.
• The MoU aims to establish a framework for collaboration and cooperation in the field of AI and emerging technologies.
• Focus on Indian Languages: A major focus of the collaboration is on building datasets in Indian languages to enable translation and large language models.
  • Priority will be given to low-resource languages, which can foster social inclusion and improve government service delivery.

Challenges of Artificial Intelligence (AI)

• Skilled workforce: There is a shortage of skilled professionals in the AI industry in India and the demand for skilled professionals still outstrips the supply.
• Data quality and availability: The lack of standardization and structure in data sets, particularly in sectors like healthcare and education, can limit the effectiveness of AI solutions.
• Infrastructure: The availability of computing infrastructure is essential for the development and deployment of AI solutions and India needs to invest in improving its computing infrastructure to support the growing demand for AI solutions.
• Funding: Despite the potential benefits of AI, funding for AI startups and research in India is relatively low compared to other countries for which more funding is needed to support the development and growth of the AI industry in India.
• Ethical and social implications: AI can have significant ethical and social implications, such as bias, privacy concerns, and job displacement.

Importance of Artificial Intelligence (AI) for India

• Economic Growth: AI is expected to contribute significantly to India’s economic growth by creating new job opportunities, increasing productivity, and fostering innovation.
• Healthcare: AI has the potential to revolutionize the healthcare sector by improving patient outcomes, increasing efficiency, and reducing costs through better disease diagnosis, drug development, and personalized treatment.
• Education: AI can enhance the quality of education by providing personalized learning experiences, automating administrative tasks, and improving student outcomes.
• Agriculture: AI can improve agricultural practices by optimizing crop yields, reducing waste, and increasing profitability through accurate weather predictions, soil analysis, and crop monitoring to help farmers make informed decisions.
• Governance: AI can help in improving governance by increasing transparency, reducing corruption, and improving service delivery by better fraud detection, resource allocation, and decision-making.