The Union Minister of Electronics & IT, Railways, and I&B, Shri Ashwini Vaishnaw, in the presence of Hon’ble MoS of E&IT Shri Jitin Prasada, Shri Abhishek Singh, Additional Secretary, MeitY and CEO, IndiaAI, Smt. Kavita Bhatia, COO, IndiaAI, Shri Nand Kumarum, P&CEO, NeGD & CEO, DIC, and other senior officials from MeitY and IndiaAI announced a significant step towards India's AI future. 

The launch includes a call for proposals for the development of indigenous foundational AI models, the creation of an AI Safety Institute, and AI applications funded under the IndiaAI Innovation Challenge. Additionally, 18,000+ GPUs will be made available through the empanelment of AI cloud service providers, reinforcing India's AI infrastructure.

Inclusive AI for Economic Empowerment

Hon’ble Minister Shri Ashwini Vaishnaw emphasized the government's vision of making modern technology accessible to all, stating, “Our Prime Minister’s economic thinking is very inclusive. He believes in making modern technology accessible to everyone to ensure the people at the bottom of the pyramid are economically empowered.”

Developing India’s Foundational AI Models

Under the IndiaAI Mission, a Call for Proposals was launched to support the development of foundational AI models. This initiative invites startups, researchers, and entrepreneurs to collaborate on creating state-of-the-art AI models using Indian datasets. The objective is to establish Indigenous AI models, including large multimodal models, large language models (LLMs), and Small Language Models (SLMs), tailored to address India-specific challenges across key sectors such as healthcare, education, agriculture, climate, and governance.

These AI models must be trained on Indian datasets to ensure linguistic, cultural, and contextual relevance. The focus is developing scalable, impactful AI solutions to drive socio-economic progress.

Proposal Evaluation Criteria

Proposals will be assessed based on:

• Team Capability: Expertise in AI/ML, prior experience, and the ability to execute high-impact projects.
• Approach and Strategy: Innovativeness, dataset strategy, model architecture, and sustainability plans.
• Timelines and Milestones: Realistic development schedules with clear deliverables.
• Use Cases: Creativity, feasibility, and scalability of societal impact applications.
• Ethical Compliance: Adherence to the DPDP Act, IT Act, and bias mitigation strategies.
• Scalability and Sustainability: Industry benchmarks, long-term adaptability, and commercial viability.
• Financial Viability: Budget justification, funding sources, and cost-effectiveness.

Funding and Support Mechanisms

The initiative offers multiple funding and support mechanisms:

• Direct Funding: Grants and AI compute credits with milestone-based disbursements.
• Equity-Based Investments: Additional funding is provided through mutual agreements.
• Co-Financing Options: Entities can secure additional funding from venture capitalists, angel investors, non-profits, or state and central government grants.

Proposals will be accepted on a rolling submission basis and evaluated on a first-come, first-served approach.

Conclusion

With these significant AI initiatives, India is positioning itself as a global leader in AI innovation. By leveraging indigenous AI solutions trained on Indian datasets, the country ensures that its AI advancements align with national priorities, creating a robust ecosystem for AI-driven transformation.