India's AI Revolution: From Talent Consumer to Exporter

At Ai4 2025, Sanjay Puri, Founder of RegulatingAI, emphasized India's growing role in AI talent development. With initiatives like the IndiaAI Mission, the nation is redefining its global position, focusing on policy and innovation to expand AI capabilities across the Global South, aiming for talent export by 2030.

At North America's premier artificial intelligence event, Ai4 2025, Sanjay Puri, Founder of RegulatingAI and Chairman of Knowledge Networks Group, delivered a compelling keynote on the crucial need for democratizing global AI talent. His speech, "Democratizing AI Talent: Bridging Policy, Innovation, and Equity," highlighted India's swift transformation into an AI powerhouse. With the backing of a substantial INR 10,300 crore IndiaAI Mission, 18,693 GPUs, and holding a significant 16% share of the global AI talent pool, India is poised to lead the Global South's rise in supplying half the world's STEM graduates by 2030.

Puri pointed out the current concentration of AI talent in the Global North, a disparity driven by systems favoring English-speaking, wealthier countries. But the scenario is evolving rapidly; India has surpassed the United States as the largest user base for ChatGPT and ranks as a major user of DeepSeek. This indicates a growing digital literacy in the Global South. OpenAI's CEO, Sam Altman, acknowledged India's potential to become the largest market for AI software, highlighting the increasing adoption of AI tools by emphasizing India's position in the global AI landscape.

Addressing concerns of technological disparity, Puri elucidated India's unique policy-driven approach to AI. Unlike the West's commercial focus, India's strategy relies on governmental support, policy frameworks, and community-focused application. Initiatives like India AI Mission and AI Kosh aim to foster innovation, ensure language inclusivity, and support local AI solutions. These efforts exemplify a paradigm not about catching up to the Global North, but rather setting the benchmark in AI development, offering a model for countries in Africa, Latin America, and Southeast Asia to follow.

(With inputs from agencies.)