IT Minister Ashwini Vaishnaw met OpenAI CEO Sam Altman to discuss India’s comprehensive AI strategy, encompassing GPUs, models and applications. Vaishnaw shared on X that Altman expressed willingness to collaborate with India on all three fronts.
Altman also praised Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s vision of democratising technology. During their conversation, Vaishnaw highlighted India’s cost-effective approach to innovation, citing the Chandrayaan-3 mission, which reached the moon at a fraction of the cost compared to other nations. Drawing a parallel, he questioned, “Why can’t we develop an AI model at a similarly reduced cost?” and reaffirmed India’s commitment to building an affordable AI ecosystem.
Vaishnaw outlined India’s AI-driven initiatives spanning healthcare, education, agriculture, weather forecasting, disaster management and transportation. Addressing an audience that included several startups, he urged entrepreneurs to devise innovative solutions.
The minister shared a video of his interaction with Altman and the startup community, announcing that India would soon launch an open AI competition. Speaking earlier at the India Today-Business Today Budget Roundtable, he revealed that India’s first foundational AI model would be ready within 10 months.
The government also plans to host an open-source AI model, similar to China’s ‘DeepSeek,’ on Indian servers. This initiative follows China’s growing influence in the AI sector. Vaishnaw noted that India had already approved an AI mission last year with a budget allocation of ₹10,000 crore.
Emphasising that AI technology is still in its early stages, he predicted an era of unprecedented innovation. With India’s robust IT industry and vast data resources, AI applications hold immense potential. However, as AI adoption accelerates globally, concerns over job displacement continue to persist.
(With inputs from ANI)
