India Will Emerge As World’s Artificial Intelligence Hub: Union Minister

New Delhi: India will become Artificial Intelligence (AI) hub for the world in the next decade, Union Minister of State for Communications Devusinh Chauhan asserted.

The government is looking to incorporate information and communications technology (ICT) and AI at primary, secondary and tertiary sectors of the economy, the minister said at a session on ICT on the sidelines of World Summit of Information Society (WSIS) in Geneva.

“India believes in the principle of ‘Antyodaya’, which means development of people at the bottom of the pyramid, the marginalized people, living in far flung areas and cut off from the main stream. For development of reliable ICT infrastructure, six hundred thousand villages are being connected through optical fiber cable,” the minister said.

Small and remote islands and other inaccessible areas are being connected through the use of satellite communication services and submarine cable networks, he added.

Chauhan apprised the participants of the session about the policy initiatives taken by the Government of India to mobilize this emerging sector.

He spoke about India’s national strategy for AI, which is being used in various fields, especially in healthcare, agriculture, education, smart cities and infrastructure, smart mobility and transportation.

Chauhan urged Japanese companies to be part of Indian initiatives in telecom sector, stressing that India is one of the largest telecom networks in the world with one of the most affordable telecom services.

“We have also announced a new Semiconductor Policy. Under this we invite Japanese companies to partner with us. We are also looking to train 85,000 engineers in the field of semiconductor technology. Japan can be India’s Knowledge Partner for this purpose,” he said.

He also held bilateral talks with Iranian counterpart Issa Zarepour.