Government's Approach to AI Innovation

In a recent statement, S Krishnan, secretary of the Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology (MeitY), emphasized the government's conscious decision to avoid legislation and regulation in the AI space. This approach aims to foster innovation without the constraints that regulation might impose. Krishnan highlighted the government's focus on applying AI as a force for innovation rather than regulating it, during the IInvenTiv event at IIT-Madras.

IndiaAI Mission and Global AI Trends

The government has invited proposals for building indigenous AI models, receiving 67 submissions under the IndiaAI Mission. These include 20 large multimodal models and around 40 small language models focused on specific domains. Krishnan noted that sector-specific small language models, while less costly, can yield significant outcomes for their respective sectors. He also mentioned the global shift in AI regulation focus from safety to action and innovation, viewing AI as an opportunity for economic leapfrogging.

Future Prospects and Infrastructure Development

Krishnan revealed plans for the availability of 15,000 graphics processing units (GPUs) under IndiaAI and the identification of 500 datasets for AI training, with 120 nearly ready for launch. He also addressed the debate over building indigenous foundational AI models, underscoring the rapid pace of AI advancements and the importance of foundational models trained on large datasets for wide-ranging functions.