The Uttar Pradesh government has planned to develop major cities as AI and IT hubs. The move follows PM Narendra Modi's clarion call from the US last month that there have been path-breaking advances in AI and that India, and the US are leading the developments. The cities lined up for the AI-and IT-based makeover include Lucknow, Kanpur, Gautam Buddha Nagar (Noida), Varanasi, and Prayagraj (Allahabad). 

Meanwhile, Lucknow has been positioned as India's first 'AI City' under the blueprint to catalyze the five cities as future IT and IT-enabled services hubs. UP Industrial Development Minister Nand Gopal Gupta said technology and tech leadership would shape the world. UP has taken a giant leap to a major hub of AI, both nationally and globally.  

Business Standard released his statement in a report stating that AI leadership means the world's leadership and our 'double engine' government is turbocharged to lead the tech revolution in the world. The proposed AI and IT sector development in these five cities is aimed at catalyzing the journey of UP to become a trillion-dollar economy. 

Recently, officials briefed CM Yogi Adityanath about a detailed road map. The CM has tasked a high-level team headed by the chief secretary to take steps to implement the proposal immediately. A 40-acre land near the Lucknow airport and flanking the Lucknow-Kanpur highway has been identified to lead the AI city landscaping; The Lucknow AI hub project will provide an entire value chain to investors and companies comprising AI start-ups data centre, data analytics, AI-based training, and data forensics etc. 

The UP government has partnered with leading enterprises, such as IIT- Kanpur, IIT-Lucknow, and APJ Abdul Kalam Technical University, for many knowledge-based initiatives and projects.