India building its LLM; boasts one of the world's largest AI talent: PM Modi

Prime Minister Narendra Modi, during his opening address at the AI Action Summit in Paris today, said AI is writing the code for humanity in this century and is re-shaping policy, economy, security and even society. He also says India leads in AI adoption, and techno-legal solutions on data privacy.

"We are developing AI applications for the public good. We have one of the world’s largest AI talent pools. India is building its Large Language Model considering our diversity. We also have a unique public-private partnership model for pooling resources like computing power. It is made available to our start-ups and researchers at an affordable cost," the Prime Minister says on the second day of his three-day visit to France.

Talking about biases in AI, and advocating for its responsible use, the PM says: "If you upload your medical report to an AI app, it can explain in simple language, free of any jargon, what it means for your health. But, if you ask the same app to draw an image of someone writing with their Left hand, the app will most likely draw someone writing with their Right hand. Because that is what the training data is dominated by. It shows that while the positive potential of AI is amazing, there are many biases that we need to think carefully about."

The PM says governance is not just about managing risks and rivalries but also about promoting innovation and deploying it for the global good. "So, we must think deeply and discuss openly about innovation and governance. Governance is also about ensuring access to all, especially in the Global South."

According to the Prime Minister, AI can help transform millions of lives by improving health, education, and agriculture. It can also help create a world in which the journey to sustainable development goals becomes easier and faster, though there's a need to pool together resources and talent, he said.

Modi says there is a need to develop open-source systems that enhance trust and transparency. "We must build quality data sets, free from biases. We must democratise technology and create people-centric applications. We must address concerns related to cyber security, disinformation, and deepfakes. And, we must also ensure that technology is rooted in local ecosystems for it to be effective and useful."

On the fears around loss of jobs due to AI, the PM says history has shown that work does not disappear due to technology. "Its nature changes and new types of jobs are created. We need to invest in skilling and re-skilling our people for an AI-driven future."

He also flags the need for the high energy intensity to develop AI, which he says will require green power to fuel its future. "India and France have worked together for years through initiatives like the International Solar Alliance to harness the power of the sun. As we advance our partnership to AI, it is a natural progression from sustainability to innovation to shape a smarter and responsible future."

India has built a Digital Public Infrastructure (DPI) for over 1.4 billion people at a very low cost, which the PM says is built around an open and accessible network. "We have unlocked the power of data through our Data Empowerment and Protection Architecture. And, we have made digital commerce democratic and accessible to all. This vision is the foundation of India’s National AI Mission."

Notably, the government had approved the IndiaAI Mission with a Budgetary outlay of Rs 10,372 crore in March 2024. IndiaAI Mission is being implemented through 7 key pillars and one of the key pillars is enabling the availability of 10,000 GPUs for AI Compute Infrastructure. The Centre through IndiaAI Independent Business Division (IBD) published a Request for Empanelment (RFE) on August 16, 2024, to empanel AI services on cloud and offer the services to academia, MSMEs, startups, the research community, governments, public sector agencies and other entities approved by IndiaAI via the CPP portal.