Prime Minister Narendra Modi  who inaugurated RAISE 2020- ‘Responsible AI for Social Empowerment 2020,’ late yesterday highlighted India’s technical prowess . Speaking on the occasion Prime Minister emphasised that at every step of history, India has led the world in knowledge and learning. In today’s age of IT as well, India is making outstanding contributions. He also underlined the committed to make India AI hub of the world.

“India has also proved to be the powerhouse of the global IT services industry. We will continue to digitally excel and delight the world. We want India to become a global hub for AI. Many Indians are already working in this area. I hope many more do so in the times to come. Our approach to this is powered by the core principles of teamwork, trust, collaboration, responsibility and inclusivity,” Shri Modi said.

“India’s National programme on AI will be dedicated towards the rightful use of AI in solving societal problems,” the Prime Minister added. Modi also emphasized that we must ensure that human intellect should always be a few steps ahead of AI. “While we discuss AI, let us also have no doubts that human creativity and human emotions continue to be our greatest strength. They are our unique advantage over machines. Even the smartest of AI cannot solve mankind’s problems without blending with our intellect,”  Modi said.

Ravi Shankar Prasad elaborated on the Government of India’s emphasis on developing AI capabilities in the country. He said that the government has set up AI centers of excellence and that more such centers will be set up to train the youth. “Technology at times overwhelms us, but we welcome AI to generate development and promote equity. India’s resource of demographic dividend will play a key role in promoting pools of skilled professionals to take the country’s AI ecosystem forward. India’s application of AI will become a beacon for the world,” Prasad said.

In his address,  Reliance Group Head Mukesh Ambani said India has the power of data generated by over a billion Indians that would catapult it to becoming a leading global AI player. “When 1.3 billion Indians are digitally empowered, they will unleash proliferation of digital enterprises that will create faster growth, better standards of living and superior opportunities across society,” Mr. Ambani said.

According to independent studies, AI has the potential to raise India’s annual growth rate by 1.3% and add USD 957 billion to the country’s economy by 2035.

“At a global level, AI will unlock USD 15.7 trillion in productivity by 2030 and it has the potential to not only boost economic growth but improve the livelihoods of millions around the world,” Dr Arvind. Krishna said. Professor Reddy emphasized the benefits of AI in bridging language barriers and for managing pandemic situations.

“Today, we can do things which were impossible to do 50 years ago. Using AI, anyone can translate from any language to any language ride in a self-driving car and play Chess at Grandmaster level. Looking forward, we can expect AI to help eliminate lockdowns, replace one-size-fits-all education by personalizing education based on individual student capabilities and interests, watch any movie and talk to anyone in any language and empower the people at the bottom of the pyramid,” he said.

The inauguration was followed by a session on the way forward for transforming the world using artificial intelligence. The session featured tech talks by Professor Reddy, Mr. Kant, and Mr. Sawhney. The session was moderated by  Abhishek Singh, President & CEO, NeGD and CEO, MyGov.

So far, more than 61,000 stakeholders from academia, the research industry and government representatives from 140 countries have registered to participate in RAISE 2020. The summit will have 45 sessions from October 5-9, with participation of around 300 speakers from academia, industry and government.

From agriculture to fin-tech and healthcare to infrastructure, India is witnessing rapid development in the integration of artificial intelligence. On the back of its technological prowess and the richness of its data, India can become the AI laboratory of the world and contribute to inclusive development.