India’s AI moment is slipping away: Paytm's Vijay Shekhar Sharma
The entrepreneur, who recently returned from Silicon Valley, expressed alarm at the scale of investment in AI development abroad.
India is squandering a historic opportunity in artificial intelligence and risks ceding technological sovereignty to foreign powers, Paytm founder Vijay Shekhar Sharma warned at the Global Fintech Fest 2025, calling for urgent action to develop domestic AI capabilities.
"I am uncomforted by the fact that our country is not playing the opportunity of AI at a scale we need to play," Sharma said during a fireside chat with Yes Bank CEO Prashant Kumar on Tuesday. "India should not give its sovereignty of AI to the foreign world at all. And in my belief, we as a country are capable and will build it."
The stark warning comes as American tech giants pour hundreds of billions of dollars into AI infrastructure and development, creating what Sharma described as a "storm" of innovation that threatens to leave India dependent on foreign technology for the next generation of computing.
Sharma drew parallels to previous technology waves where the country failed to establish independence. "If a computer came in, then Americans had an operating system. If the cloud came in, then they had an operating system. If a mobile came, then they had an operating system. If AI came, how long will you keep taking their operating system?" he asked.
The entrepreneur, who recently returned from Silicon Valley, expressed alarm at the scale of investment in AI development abroad. "There is a deal of 10-100 billion dollars. And none of us are bothered about it," he said, noting that such figures dwarf the funding rounds that once excited India's startup ecosystem.
Sharma announced he is shifting his focus to AI ventures in 2025, following a pattern of decade-long commitments to emerging technologies. "In 2005, I worked in a telecom operator. In 2015, I worked in payment. In 2025, I will work in AI," he said. "In this country, if a person doesn't work in AI, then that person doesn't work for the future."
The Paytm founder said he plans to launch a new brand separate from his payments company, recognising that "Paytm is a financial services, payment technology-related word" and that AI represents a distinct opportunity requiring dedicated focus.
Despite his concerns, Sharma expressed confidence in India's ability to build competitive AI systems, citing the country's technical talent and improved access to risk capital. "The amount of energy and the amount of intelligence that we have. And for the first time, we have access to the risk capital," he said.
He pointed to Huawei's development of its own operating system after being banned from using Android as proof that alternatives to dominant platforms can be built when necessary. "It is not that if Android came, then the world would end. You must have heard of Huawei. They were banned from Android. And then they made the entire operating system," he said. "The day we start believing that our people can make something, I can give you a commitment."
(The article has been updated)
Edited by Jyoti Narayan