India's Path & AI Governance as a Model for Other Countries?
Patrick Upmann
Founder of AIGN - AI Governance Network | Interim Manager & Consultant for AI Ethics, AI Governance, and Data Privacy | EU AI Act Expert | Keynote Speaker & Workshop Leader – Driving Compliant and Ethical AI Solutions
India’s strategy to develop its own foundational AI models offers an alternative to Western and Chinese-dominated AI models.
India Joins the Global AI Race – Launching Its Own Foundation Models with Massive GPU Infrastructure
India is making a bold move in the global AI landscape, announcing plans to develop homegrown foundation modelsthat will compete with OpenAI’s ChatGPT, Google’s Gemini, and China’s DeepSeek R1. Backed by a new high-performance computing facility with 18,693 GPUs, the Indian government is laying the groundwork for an independent and cost-effective AI development ecosystem.
The state-of-the-art compute facility will be open to startups, researchers, and enterprises, offering subsidized access to drastically reduce training costs. Currently, the global benchmark for GPU usage stands at $2-3 per hour (?170-260), whereas India's facility will provide AI compute at ?115.85 per GPU hour—with government subsidies potentially reducing costs to under ?100 per hour.
Powering India’s AI Ambitions
Minister for Electronics and IT Ashwini Vaishnaw revealed that the first 10,000 GPUs will soon go online. These GPUs will be sourced from ten major private-sector companies, including Yotta Data Services, Tata Communications, CMS Computers, E2E Networks, Jio Platforms, and NxtGen Datacenter. The firms have secured a total of 12,896 Nvidia H100 GPUs, 1,480 Nvidia H200 GPUs, and 742 AMD MI325/MI325X GPUs for the initiative.
Additionally, the government is actively supporting AI innovation, working with six select startups that are expected to build the first Indian foundation models within six to ten months. Furthermore, 18 AI-driven applications focused on agriculture, learning disabilities, and climate change have already been selected for funding.
India’s Response to DeepSeek’s Disruption
This announcement follows the recent emergence of China’s DeepSeek R1 on January 20, 2025. Developed on a modest $5.6 million budget, DeepSeek R1 stunned the AI community by surpassing ChatGPT as the top-ranked AI model on Apple’s App Store, demonstrating that high-performance models can be built at a fraction of the cost of OpenAI and Google’s systems.
India’s approach focuses on algorithmic efficiency, scalable compute infrastructure, and targeted AI investments to secure its position in the global AI race. Minister Vaishnaw emphasized that India is not late to the competition but is now leveraging its low-cost, high-capacity computing power to drive an AI revolution.
A Strategic Economic and Geopolitical Play
The push for AI development is also a core component of India’s broader economic vision. According to Ankush Wadhera, Managing Director at Boston Consulting Group, India's economy is projected to reach $10 trillion by 2030, with AI serving as a key driver of this growth. Experts predict that only three countries—the U.S., China, and India—will be able to dominate the AI space.
Simultaneously, India is investing in AI safety institutions, structured as a hub-and-spoke model to ensure the ethical, secure, and responsible use of AI. Key research projects will include Machine Unlearning (IIT Jodhpur), Bias Mitigation, Explainable AI (Defence Institute of Advanced Technology, Pune), and Privacy-Enhancing Strategies (IIT Delhi, IIIT Delhi, TEC).
By building an independent AI infrastructure, India aims to reduce reliance on foreign AI models and computing resources. While the U.S. has tightened export controls on high-end GPUs, Vaishnaw asserted that India is considered a “trusted partner”, indicating it is unlikely to be impacted by these restrictions.
Conclusion: Is India Emerging as a Global AI Powerhouse?
With one of the world’s most cost-effective GPU infrastructures, an ambitious roadmap, and strong government support for AI startups, India has the potential to become a major player in AI innovation. If the country successfully executes its vision, it could establish itself as the third dominant AI force alongside the U.S. and China.
The coming months will reveal whether India’s AI strategy will truly disrupt the market—or if it will remain just another competitor in the ever-evolving AI landscape.
India’s strategy to develop its own foundational AI models offers an alternative to Western and Chinese-dominated AI models. But how can India transform this into a governance framework that is viable for other nations?
This analysis is divided into two key perspectives:
India’s AI Governance Approach
India is pursuing a mix of state-backed initiatives, local infrastructure investments, and AI ethics frameworks. This approach can be broken down into several key elements:
?? Digital Sovereignty: Reducing Dependence on OpenAI & Google
?? Applicability: ? Works for countries with strong tech sectors (e.g., Germany, France, Brazil). ? Less realistic for smaller countries lacking investment capacity.
?? Infrastructure & Compute Capacity for AI
?? Applicability: ? Works for countries with state-backed AI infrastructure investments (e.g., EU, Japan). ? Nations without strong AI funding remain dependent on US-based cloud providers (AWS, Azure, Google Cloud).
领英推荐
?? AI Safety & Ethics: India’s Governance Approach
India is focusing on:
?? Applicability: ? A best practice model for other countries developing national AI regulations. ? Without international coordination, it could lead to fragmented AI governance standards.
?? Government-Driven AI for Societal Benefit
?? Applicability: ? A strong strategy for developing & emerging economies looking to use AI for social impact. ? Industrialized nations might find this too restrictive for a broad AI governance model.
Can India’s Model Work for Global AI Governance?
India provides a strong example of national AI governance, but what parts of this approach can be scaled globally?
?? What Can Other Countries Learn from India?
? State-funded compute resources for AI startups & researchers. ? AI governance frameworks ensuring ethical and transparent AI. ? Independent AI oversight institutions to monitor bias & accountability. ? Targeted AI funding for social impact (healthcare, environment, education).
?? What’s Missing for Global AI Governance?
While India’s approach is promising, it does not solve global AI governance challenges. A true international framework requires:
1?? Global Cooperation & Standardization
? There is no unified global AI regulatory framework today. ? A “Global AI Governance Council” (similar to WTO or WHO) could set global AI standards. ? Solution: A multilateral AI agreement between USA, EU, China & India.
2?? Global Regulations on AI Safety & Ethics
? Each region is setting separate AI rules (EU AI Act, US AI Executive Order, China’s AI regulation). ? There is no shared ethics charter for foundational AI models. ? Solution: A global audit system for AI models, managed by the UN or OECD.
3?? Control Over AI Training & Compute Infrastructure
? 90% of AI chips are controlled by US companies – India, the EU & others remain dependent. ? Countries must develop domestic semiconductor capabilities for true AI independence. ? Solution: A "Global AI Compute Fund" to finance independent AI infrastructure worldwide.
?? Conclusion: India’s Model Is a Strong National Approach – But Not a Global Solution
India demonstrates how countries can achieve digital sovereignty and AI governance. However, without global standards and cooperation, AI governance will remain fragmented.
?? What Can Other Countries Learn from India’s AI Strategy?
? What’s the Next Step for Global AI Governance?
?? A global AI governance treaty between the USA, EU, China & India – establishing shared AI safety, transparency, and regulatory standards.
?? The key question remains: Who will lead this initiative? The UN? WTO? OECD? Or a completely new AI Governance Council?
Knowledge Representation Beyond Semantics Expressed by Ontology and Taxonomy
1 周This resolves and "dissolves" the conundrum of governance. https://www.academia.edu/127672629/Abstract_Conjugate_Intelligence_The_Holonic_Convergence_of_Organic_and_Synthetic_Cognition_The_Conjugate_Intelligence_of_the_Future https://www.academia.edu/127672988/Beyond_Organic_and_Synthetic_Intelligence_AI_The_Conjugate_Intelligence_of_the_Future
"CEO@Kazma | Author AI Book| AI Evangelist | AI Leadership Expert |AI Ethicist | Automation |Quantum Computing Enthusiast | Exploring the Future of Computation | Driving Digital Transformation and AI Solution"
3 周Patrick Upmann thanks for writing these details on India's strategic move on AI Dominance and creating its custom Models,your perception and information is based on what the government announced you are well aware ,there is no doubt in the capabilities of our country ,it's well known that chip making capabilities and sever infra technology is still dominated by companies based in USA,India need to work a lot to develop the computing infra with it's AI Capabilities, if you do a research the market cap of all Indian unicorns and corporation their data center are on Aws,azure or GCP, like anu other evolving counties,India is moving towards building the infrastructure which is not something which can be done overnight, this business needs to moved for few global leaders and few Indian icons to ground level, innovators and investor to consider this business to be gold mine for future, as we are moving the age of AI reaching towards quantum computing,the need to more computing power demand will increase, AI regulations as in very early stage but yes it's moving in the right direction, the main fact Indian start-up and unicorns still lag the experience of working on Global level to have the experience of maintaining global policies