Ashwini Vaishnaw

India—the world’s fifth largest economy—is trying to become a major player in the world of AI. The country’s electronics and information technology minister, Aishwini Vaishnaw, leads its efforts.

While the country has yet to create binding AI laws, for the past year, it has chaired the Global Partnership on Artificial Intelligence—an international initiative to support states in governing AI. 

As part of its chairmanship, India hosted the Global IndiaAI Summit in July, attended by over 2,000 AI experts, including senior leaders from OpenAI and Microsoft, and delegates from over 50 countries. At the Summit, Vaishnaw emphasized the need to “democratize technology,”  so it’s accessible to all. 

The Indian government has also allocated over $1.2 billion to support its nascent AI sector. Most of the country’s AI efforts have been funneled through its “IndiaAI” initiative, managed by Vaishnaw’s ministry. The ministry aims to secure over 10,000 Graphic Processing Units, the chips that power most AI technology, to increase the country’s computing capacity; provide finance for local startups; increase access to high-quality datasets; expand access to AI educational opportunities for Indians; and develop its own state-of-the-art AI models.

Under Vaishnaw’s leadership, the country hopes to become one of the top five countries for semiconductor manufacturing—a key component for modern AI systems—within the next five years. Construction has begun on several factories. 

Yet, Vaishnaw faces significant challenges in realizing these ambitions. India's tech sector struggles with low private R&D investment and a lack of advanced manufacturing ecosystems. Its educational system is also catching up to produce the specialized workforce needed for cutting-edge AI and semiconductor development. 

High import tariffs on electronic components, global competition for talent and resources, and the complexity of rapidly upgrading infrastructure (particularly the extensive power and water supply systems that are required for semiconductor manufacturing), may be further hurdles on India’s path to becoming a leader in the AI space.

As in every country, India is striving to strike a balance between fostering innovation and ensuring AI benefits its people and constraining the technology’s risks. Whether it will succeed remains to be seen.