By Dr Sethi K.C.*
In case we talk in straight terms and remove diplomacy, India is not one of the leading AI forces in the world in terms of core technology leadership. It is a significant and fast-evolving AI market, and a large talent center, yet it is not the one that is leading the pack in artificial intelligence innovation.
The United States is the world leader in the state of the art AI models, research advancement, and high-scale compute infrastructure. China comes second with giant state investment, great industrial AI implementation, and increasing models domestically. Compared to the US, India is located in a second level position which is not dominant but relevant.
Underlying AI development is the most evident pointer. Multimodal systems, the most powerful large language models in the world and the state-of-art research output continue to be overwhelmingly created outside India. Indian organizations and firms are active consumers and adaptors of AI, yet distinctive, globally leading foundation models of the country are in limited numbers and dimensions. This is by far the best indication that India is not yet setting the technological curve.
Infrastructure also brings out the difference. Hyperscale computing clusters, dedicated AI-related chips, and deep ecosystems of semiconductors are vital to the advanced AI development. India is just starting to invest in these sectors, but its computing capacity is currently humble in the face of the huge AI supercomputing in the United States and China. In the absence of similar high-performance infrastructure, it is challenging to lead in frontier AI.The tendency of privately investing supports this fact. Although the ecosystem of startups in India is quite vibrant and active, the amount of funding to long-term AI studies remains relatively low. The breakthrough AI systems are usually a result of an environment where billions of dollars have been placed into a patient environment over years. India is also making more investments, but the magnitude is not so yet in the same category as the top two AI giants.
India is truly a leader in talent provision and massive use of AI. The nation boasts of a large pool of talented engineers, as well as one of the rapidly expanding AI consumer bases globally. Indian software developers are also part of the global software ecosystem and Indian businesses are quickly adopting AI in services. This offers India name and prominence but name by doing is not leadership by creation.The showcases in the general case like robotic demonstrations or AI expos are to be interpreted in this context. They signify increased technical potential and aspiration, but not alone they are an indicator of frontier leadership. The real AI strength can be assessed by the long-term research output, the models employed worldwide, semiconductor autonomy, and extensive capitalization. According to such more difficult measurements, India is still in the construction stage.The recent AI Impact Summit in New Delhi shows the intentions of India to assume a more important role in the world in AI regulation and cooperation. Such a summit is a sign of seriousness on the part of diplomacy and strategy. Nevertheless, the world power of AI is eventually directed at the technological richness instead of the showcase conference. The summit makes India more vocal in the dialogue, however it fails to alter the technological pecking order.
To put it in blunt words, India as we know it today can be described as:A major AI talent reservoir An extremely huge and fast-expanding AI market.A new applied-AI innovator.However, not yet an AI superpower on a frontier.The trend is on the upward and the nation has actual prospects. In case India drastically increases the number of high-performance compute, deep-tech investment, semiconductor capability, and original model research in the next 10 years, this would give India a boost in its global position. However, at this point, the plain truth is that India is contributing immensely to the AI revolution but is not yet at the forefront of the same.
*(Dr Sethi K.C. is Author of Daman, India, Auckland, New Zealand.The views expressed are solely those of the author.)
