Even college students aiming to create foundational models can participate in AI Mission: IndiaAI Mission CEO

In an exclusive interview with businessline, Abhishek Singh, Additional Secretary, Ministry of Electronics and IT (MeitY), who is leading the IndiaAI Mission as the CEO over last nine months, said with the availability of GPUs in India, we may compete with global AI models like ChatGPT or DeepSeek. Edited excerpts:

How important or crucial would these GPUs be in facilitating Indian AI models?  This empanelment is a crucial step in making AI infrastructure accessible to Indian researchers, start-ups and government agencies at reduced cost. Will test DeepSeek ‘on our servers, while developing own AI model’   Ananth Technologies plays a crucial role in GSLV-F15, NVS-2 mission success

Since these GPUs are available now, our students and researchers can make models on a large-scale instead of working in an adhoc manner by getting free access to some computes available freely. By accessing compute infrastructure at a subsidised cost, they will be able to train it better. Model training doesn’t happen in one go. You have to do multiple runs that entails additional costs. So, if we are able to address this gap, we will be able to succeed. We can hope that somebody comes out with something better than the existing models. It cannot be guaranteed, but the role of the government is to enable people.

What will be the medium for accessing these GPUs?  There will be a common portal (to be launched next week) where these developers can come and say: “I want 1,000 GPUs for 30 days or 15 days or two months or six months,” for foundational models and applications.

Even students can demand applications. People can request how much they want, for what period they want, and the purpose for which they are demanding. Depending on the quantum of requirement, we will assess them immediately after which the approval will be given.

The moment the approval comes, we will decide how much GPUs to provide. There is a criteria, and depending on the demand, levels of approvals will come from the Committee. For instance, if somebody wants GPUs worth ₹100 crore, it may be processed through Ministry level as that involves such a large amount of subsidy.

We have worked on a system in which approvals happen quickly online, but with scrutiny so that there is no misuse of the GPUs. But the moment we say ‘okay’, it will go with the 40 per cent subsidy that the government has decided under the IndiaAI Mission.

What are India’s aspirations? Do you think we will be able to compete with the likes of ChatGPT, DeepSeek, etc? It may happen, but we are not saying that ‘it will’ happen. The point is that once we allow our innovators to build something, they may do something big, and what we have announced today, this may attract some of the Indian origin developers to return to India too and build something big. In fact, we have been in talks with some very big researchers. This is going to give an opportunity for some of these minds to come together and build something big...it doesn’t take very long.

Has the emergence of DeepSeek now paved the way for Indians to develop similar AI models?

Many Indian developers, entrepreneurs, students now believe that it can be done. If such models can be developed in $5-6 million, it is nothing much.... Many people across the world are doing it and the code is open source. Our students can also try to make such models.

Would foreign companies or companies that have foreign investments be able to participate in this Mission? No, this is only for Indian companies...