Other countries are looking towards India for new technologies like AI, says Rajeev Chandrasekhar

Rajeev Chandrasekhar, Union Minister of State for Electronics and Information Technology of India, said that the government considers AI as an enabler of the digital economy.

Speaking at YourStory's flagship startup event, TechSparks 2023, he said that AI is a force multiplier to the present momentum of the economy.

He recalled that while attending a meeting in Brussels, the European Commission wanted to hear India’s approach towards AI. The minister also announced that in December this year, there will be India’s first-ever edition of the Global AI Summit.

From 2014 to 2023, the technology landscape has evolved, said Rajeev Chandrasekhar. He also spoke about how the tech and digital landscape has evolved since 2014. 

“From following the West on policies and regulations, the times have changed. Now, other countries are looking towards our country to understand what our approach to new technologies would be,” he said.  

He added that fast forward from 2014 to 2023, if we look at the landscape of the digital or tech economy- whether it is deeptech, AI, quantum computing, or semiconductors…there isn't a place where India is not on tech.

Following the provision of India Stack and Digital Public Infrastructure (DPI) to eight nations, Chandrasekhar said that 20 countries have expressed interest in harnessing India's technological capabilities.

India has already entered into eight memorandums of understanding (MoUs) with countries including Armenia, Sierra Leone, Suriname, Antigua, Barbados, Trinidad and Tobago, Papua New Guinea, and Mauritius. Under these agreements, India is offering access to India Stack and DPI at no cost and with open-source accessibility.