New Delhi [India], December 09: At the ongoing Global Partnership on Artificial Intelligence (GPAI) Summit 2024 in Belgrade, Serbia, Shashi Shekhar Vempati, Co-Founder of the DeepTech for Bharat Foundation (AI4India.org) and former CEO of Prasar Bharati, delivered a compelling address on the transformative power of AI in emerging economies along with co-panel members Milan Bosnic, Laurence Lew, Marco Cadez.
Participating in a panel discussion on “AI’s Impact on Emerging Economies,” Vempati underscored India’s unique position to leapfrog into an AI-driven future, much like its rapid adoption of mobile technologies in the past. He articulated how India’s evolving AI ecosystem, bolstered by government-backed initiatives like the Public GPU Cloud, is democratizing access to technology and fostering grassroots innovation.
Mr. Vempati drew attention to Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s vision of democratizing technology through Digital Public Goods, which now extends to AI infrastructure. Highlighting India’s focus on developing indigenous AI capabilities, he spoke about the importance of Indic-language AI tools like BHASHINI, which are breaking down language barriers to enhance accessibility and inclusivity. These efforts, he noted, are paving the way for transformative applications across agriculture, manufacturing, and public services, ultimately contributing to India’s socio-economic development.
A central theme of his address was the DataDaan campaign, a pioneering effort to build large, publicly accessible datasets. The initiative invites individuals, institutions, and public bodies to contribute their datasets to create a repository that can empower startups, researchers, and academia to build AI models tailored to India’s local context. “Data Daan is about turning a challenge into an opportunity. By sharing our datasets, we’re not just fostering innovation but enabling India to lead in building AI solutions for diverse and nuanced applications,” Mr. Vempati explained.
In his remarks, Vempati reflected on the unique advantage emerging economies like India possess—the absence of legacy systems, which allows them to adopt advanced technologies with agility. He stressed that with the right investments in AI and initiatives like Data Daan, India could position itself as a global leader in AI innovation.
At GPAI 2024, Mr. Vempati who is also on the advisory board of the Center of Policy Research and Governance credited CPRG for its continuous contribution and support to the Data Daan Initiative in collaboration with AI4India . Founded in 2016, CPRG is an independent Delhi-based think tank dedicated to advancing people-centric policymaking and addressing challenges in the economy, workforce, and education through research on emerging technologies.
CPRG Director Dr. Ramanand underscored the importance of AI4India and CPRG’s joint participation at the GPAI in presenting India’s priorities and challenges in this fast emerging field. Adding to the discourse, Visiting Fellow Chetan Aggarwal presented insights on ‘AI in Agriculture Green Transition and Climate,’ at the GPAI exemplifying CPRG’s commitment to driving sustainable growth through innovation.
Mr. Alok Agrawal, Co-Founder of AI4India, the joint efforts of AI4India and CPRG at GPAI 2024 as a “blueprint for how emerging economies can harness AI for equitable and sustainable progress” with initiatives like ‘Data Daan’ gaining momentum.
The GPAI Summit 2024, a global forum dedicated to advancing the responsible and sustainable use of artificial intelligence, provided a vital platform for discussions on AI’s role in shaping the future of developing economies. Vempati’s contributions underscored the importance of building local capabilities, democratizing access, and leveraging technology to address India’s unique challenges.
About AI4India.org:
AI4India.org, driven by the DeepTech for Bharat Foundation, is committed to advancing grassroots innovation in AI. The organization focuses on empowering key sectors such as agriculture, manufacturing, and public services through indigenous AI tools and solutions. Its flagship initiative, Data Daan, seeks to create a publicly accessible repository of datasets, enabling researchers, startups, and academia to develop AI models that address India’s diverse needs. AI4India is dedicated to making India self-reliant in AI technologies, fostering inclusivity, and aligning innovation with the nation’s socio-economic priorities.For more information, visit www.ai4india.org.
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Divya Agarwal
