AI = Aero India

Aero India 2025, Asia’s largest air show, commenced on February 10 at the Air Force Station in Yelahanka, Bengaluru. This theme this year is: The Runway to a Billion Opportunities, which underscores India’s ambitions in aerospace and defence innovation. The focus, hence, remained on Aatmanirbhar Bharat and making Indian defence a tech powerhouse.?

An AIM journalist who attended the event reported back in awe: “It was almost like a concert of India’s aerospace and defence capabilities.”

At the heart of the display is a full-scale model of India’s first 5.5-generation stealth aircraft, the Advanced Medium Combat Aircraft (AMCA), which symbolises the country’s progress in advanced aviation technology.?

The India Pavilion, a testament to the Make-in-India initiative, has brought together innovations from private industries, defence public sector undertakings, and start-ups. It displays over 330 products across 14 technology zones.?

Defence minister Rajnath Singh called 2025 the ‘Year of Reforms’ for the Indian defence, emphasising that these reforms will require active participation from the armed forces, defence PSUs, and private industry.

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Meet Major Raj Prasad??

At the centre of these reforms in tech in the Indian Army is Major Raj Prasad, a service innovation officer in the Indian Army’s Corps of Engineers from the Army Design Bureau and 7 Engineer Regiment. He has developed groundbreaking innovations that could redefine battlefield tactics.?

Major Prasad has demonstrated expertise in homegrown defence solutions by developing twelve cutting-edge military technologies, four of which have already been inducted into the Indian Army.

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At Aero India, there is also a lot that happens behind the scenes. Another AIM journalist went beyond the flashy jets into the “restricted zones” where the real action unfolds. Check out the deep-dive video below:

At the same time, another event is unfolding in Bengaluru.

Invest Karnataka 2025, a two-day event starting February 12, will see prominent industry leaders, policymakers, and investors showcasing Karnataka’s strategic position in India’s economic and technological landscape.

Speaking at the inaugural event at Bangalore Palace, Union minister Rajnath Singh proclaimed, “Bengaluru will give India its first foundational artificial intelligence model.” This underscores the city’s strength as an undisputed leader in the next wave of innovation.

Besides, the event witnessed the signing of several key MoUs amounting to nearly $115 billion, further cementing the state’s appeal to major investors.

Meanwhile, Prime Minister Narendra Modi was at the AI Action Summit in Paris on Tuesday, co-chairing the event with French President Emmanuel Macron. Outlining his thoughts on India’s AI ambitions, Modi said, “AI is writing the code for humanity in this century.” He also expressed his views on the values that shape a powerful and responsible AI system.

“We must build quality datasets free from biases, democratise technology, and create people-centric applications. We need to address concerns related to cybersecurity, disinformation, and other threats, and we must also ensure that technology is rooted in many ecosystems for it to be effective and useful,” he added.