Kolkata: IIEST (Indian Institute of Engineering Science and Technology) Shibpur, a 169-year-old institution with a rich history, is making Artificial Intelligence (AI) and Machine Learning (ML) a compulsory subject for all first-year students starting from the next academic session.

This means students across all engineering disciplines will have to take this course, not only those with computer science.

VMSR Murthy, Director IIEST said, ‘As per the NEP 2020, the institute’s Senate in principle agreed to the introduction of a mandatory artificial intelligence course for all first-year students across disciplines in the first semester. Since it is an emerging field and AI applications are growing in all domains, it was thought that irrespective of discipline,  students must be equipped with the basic knowledge of AI. We are in the process of finalising the course curriculum’.

Arindam Biswas, professor at IT department said, ‘The students will learn the basic concepts of AI and ML along with deep learning. They will get an understanding of the learning processes of AI, like supervised and unsupervised learning, and how to use AI in decision-making and problem-solving. This basic knowledge will help them in future applications of AI in specific engineering areas later.’

By making AI and ML courses mandatory, IIEST will make graduates skilled and equipped with the fundamental knowledge to become successful in an AI-driven world. This decision reflects the institute’s willingness to adapt and innovate to the evolving requirements of today’s industry.

Source: https://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/city/kolkata/169-year-old-iiest-set-to-take-new-age-ai-leap/articleshow/118125402.cms

India’s leading news organisations are filing a lawsuit against OpenAI (the creator of ChatGPT) for using their copyrighted content without permission to train their AI (artificial intelligence) chatbot.

The involved media houses include some of the oldest ones such as The Indian Express, The India Today Group, The Hindu, billionaire Gautam Adani-owned NDTV, and many others.

However, OpenAI denied the allegations and said it uses ‘publicly available data’.

In his recent visit to India, Sam Altman CEO of OpenAI seemed impressed by the country’s AI potential and said it should be among the leaders in the AI revolution.

The lawsuit was initially filed in the Delhi High Court in November 2024 by ANI (Asian News International), India’s largest news agency. Now, dozens of India’s leading media organisations are joining this legal action.

These media houses claim that OpenAI has used their copyrighted content to train ChatGPT without their permission. As this is a clear violation of copyright law, they are seeking financial compensation for this unauthorised use and a court order to stop OpenAI from doing the same in the future.

Publishers, artists, and news organisations worldwide have filed at least a dozen lawsuits against OpenAI, accusing ChatGPT of copyright infringement.

Vibhav Mithal, AI lawyer (Anand and Anand) said, ‘A decision by any court would also hold some persuasive value for other similar cases around the world’.

He said ANI’s lawsuit verdict could ‘define how these AI models will operate in the future’ and ‘what copyrighted news content can be used to train AI generative models [like ChatGPT]’.

‘But a ruling in OpenAI’s favour will lead to more freedom to use copyrighted protected data to train AI models’, he added.

Source: https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/cg7ze00ly1zo

A recent survey by LocalCircles revealed that 50% of Indian internet users use AI (artificial intelligence) platforms specifically ChatGPT.  Of these users, 90% use text mode and 10% prefer voice mode.

Looking at the increasing usage of AI tools among internet users in India, the Finance Ministry has issued a new directive about AI tools like ChatGPT and DeepSeek about their usage.

According to Reuters, the Finance Ministry in India has restricted the use of AI tools like ChatGPT and DeepSeek for official work due to data security concerns.

Reuters quoted, “It has been determined that AI tools and AI apps (such as ChatGPT, DeepSeek etc.) in the office computers and devices pose risks for confidentiality of (government) data and documents”.

So, is ChatGPT banned in India?

No, ChatGPT is not banned in India. However, its usage is restricted within a few government departments. Government employees are not permitted to use ChatGPT on devices used for work. The primary reason for this restriction is the data security concern and potential misuse but the general public can use and access it.

Source: https://www.livemint.com/ai/artificial-intelligence/is-chatgpt-banned-in-india-check-the-new-government-directive-on-ai-tools-and-risks-for-confidentiality-11738736400261.html

Sam Altman, CEO of OpenAI seems to have a perspective change on India’s AI (artificial intelligence) plans. Initially (last year) he was doubtful about India’s potential to compete in the development of foundational AI models as the associated cost was high.

However, during his recent visit to India, he expressed optimism and acknowledged the country’s swift progress in the AI landscape. Now, he believes the country has the potential to be a global leader in AI.

In an interview with Hindustan Times, Altman said ‘India should go for the full-stack approach in Artificial Intelligence’.

Altman has significantly revised his recommendations for India’s AI development since his 2023 visit. In the initial visit, responding to a question he had said, “It is totally hopeless to compete with us on training foundation models,”.

He had suggested that government and business resources would be better spent elsewhere. In the interview on Wednesday, he said “That was in a different context”. “That was a time when frontier models were super-expensive to do”.

“If you look at the cost curve of AI, we have been able to reduce the cost of a given level of intelligence about 10x every 12 months, which is unbelievably more powerful than Moore’s law,” he added.

In the interview, Altman said “India will build great models’. While not revealing exact numbers, Altman confirmed India as OpenAI’s second-biggest market after the US, with user growth tripling in the last year.

He said, “ think this is one of these rare things that transcends national borders. AI is like the wheel and the fire and the Industrial Revolution and the agricultural revolution. That is not a country thing. It belongs to everybody”.

Source: https://www.hindustantimes.com/india-news/hopeless-to-incredible-sam-altman-changes-his-mind-on-india-s-ai-plans-101738780851523.html

According to the report, India’s Ministry of Electronics and IT (MeitY), along with the Centre for Development of Advanced Computing (C-DAC) and the National e-Governance Division (NeGD) is designing India’s own AI (artificial intelligence) chip from scratch.

As AI is becoming increasingly crucial in the country, this initiative aims to reduce its reliance on foreign chip manufacturers. This project is a collaboration between government bodies and various experts, emphasising power-efficient usage suitable for advanced AI development.

A homegrown AI chip will provide a great boost to the country’s domestic AI research and development. This initiative will make efficient and powerful computing resources more accessible to businesses, startups, and researchers.

An official announcement of this project is expected later this year. On 30, January 2025, Union IT minister Ashwini Vaishnaw at the Utkarsh Odisha Conclave disclosed that India is planning to develop its own generative AI model. This initiative will leverage the 18,693 GPUs secured by the India AI Compute Facility to build a large language model (LLM).

India will need to compete with established players in the global chip market such as Nvidia and AMD. This bold move reflects the country’s ambition to become a global leader in the AI landscape.

Source: https://www.moneycontrol.com/technology/india-begins-developing-its-own-ai-chip-likely-to-roll-out-by-2027-report-article-12930837.html

A recent report by Emeritus, one of the leading online education providers revealed that a staggering 94% of Indian employees believe that AI (artificial intelligence) skills will boost their careers significantly.

This figure indicates the rising recognition of AI, its transformative potential in the workplace, and the significance of acquiring AI-related skills for career advancement.

This report by Emeritus is based on the survey of more than 6,000 professionals in various sectors (including software and IT services), insurance, manufacturing, and finance) aged 21-65 across 18 countries. According to this report, Indian professionals are leading in AI adoption with 96% of them using this technology and generative AI tools at work, surpassing the UK (84%), the US (81%) and.

This shows that the Indian workforce is embracing AI technologies and integrating these tools into various work processes proactively.

Ashwin Damera, CEO and Co-Founder of Emeritus said “As the world undergoes economic and technological changes, the workforce needs to keep up with the time and evolve their approach to work with new skills, mindsets, and competencies”.

“The findings highlight the resilience and forward-thinking mindset of Indian professionals and their employers in positioning AI as a career catalyst” he added.

According to this report, Indian learners see four key AI trends; rapid adoption, prioritising AI skills, workplace transformation, and job displacement concerns. Additionally, the findings underscore the need for professionals to acquire AI skills to stay competitive and relevant in the rapidly evolving job market.

Source: https://hr.economictimes.indiatimes.com/news/trends/94-of-indian-workforce-believe-ai-skills-will-skyrocket-careers-report/117882657

DeepSeek-R1, a highly advanced Chinese AI (artificial intelligence) LLM (large language model) has demonstrated that building powerful LLMs can be done at a much lower cost than previously assumed like ChatGPT. The emergence of DeepSeek has challenged the notion that only resource-equipped nations or companies can develop such high-end technology.

For India where resources for AI development are limited, DeepSeek’s emergence has demonstrated that competitive results can be achieved with a significantly lower budget. With lowered cost barriers, India is potentially ready to develop its own foundational AI model.  This can dramatically boost the country’s economic development, impact technological independence and improve its capability to solve its problems.

DeepSeek-R1’s open-source nature enables Indian developers to study, access, and adapt the model for their own purposes. This Chinese AI model has made India’s foundational AI model dreams more achievable because its development doesn’t require excessive financial resources.

Source: https://www.thehindu.com/business/Industry/with-deepseek-are-indias-foundational-ai-model-dreams-closer-to-reality/article69164037.ece

Thursday, 30, January 2025: Union IT minister Ashwini Vaishnaw at the Utkarsh Odisha Conclave disclosed that India is planning to develop its own generative AI model. This initiative will leverage the 18,693 GPUs secured by the India AI Compute Facility to build a large language model (LLM).

This initiative will be a significant step for India in the field of AI. It will enable the country to develop AI models tailored to its specific needs which can be leveraged to address various emerging challenges. Additionally, having its own generative AI model will minimise India’s reliance on foreign AI models.

Vaishnaw announced, “I am very happy to say that, against 10,000 GPUs, we have actually empanelled 18,693 GPUs,”. This includes 12,896 Nvidia H100s and 1,480 Nvidia H200s, some of the most powerful GPUs available. “Overall, the net high-end GPUs we have is 15,000,” he added, noting that even a model like DeepSeek was trained on just 2,000 GPUs. Roughly 10,000 of these GPUs are available today.

“The second big mission of the IndiaAI mission was to develop an AI model,”. “We have now created the framework which will be launched today. We are calling for proposals to develop our own foundational models, where the Indian context, the Indian languages, and the culture of our country are considered, where the biases can be removed. Where the datasets, for our country, for our citizens – that process will start today.”- he added.

The development of the generative AI model is expected to be completed in four to eight months. Once it is completed, not only it is going to be a valuable tool for researchers, startups, and several institutions in India but also help to promote the development of AI in India.

Source: https://economictimes.indiatimes.com/tech/artificial-intelligence/ashwini-vaishnaw-says-india-to-develop-own-generative-ai-model-report/articleshow/117724681.cms?from=mdr

Zerodha CEO Nithin Kamath has expressed concerns about India’s approach to artificial intelligence (AI) innovation. He believes that the country’s focus on quick fixes and a “Jugaad” mentality is hindering its progress. 

Kamath pointed to China’s DeepSeek AI breakthrough as proof of the value of long-term AI research investment. He argued that India lacks this kind of support for researchers, causing many talented individuals to leave the country. He suggests this “Jugaad” approach, while sometimes effective in the short term, ultimately prevents India from competing with countries like China in the long run in the AI race.

He compares India and China, pointing out their similar economic starting points in the mid-20th century.  He then emphasises how China’s reforms led to much greater economic and technological advancement.

According to Kamath, DeepSeek, a Chinese AI model developed for a mere $6 million, exemplifies India’s missed opportunity. China’s DeepSeek has achieved remarkable success in the AI field, surpassing OpenAI’s models, dominating the iOS App Store, and outshining Meta in open-source AI.

Kamath said “Say what you will about the differences in our worldviews and economic models, but their scientific and technological progress is undeniable across disciplines—DeepSeek is just the latest example.

“I think the problem that has always plagued India is short-termism. Problems are typically addressed through a patchwork or the Jugaad mentality. This is true when it comes to business, politics, regulatory approaches, etc. Many problems that require focused long-term thinking instead get band-aid fixes,” he stated.

He said “This is not something that will show results instantly. In the case of China, it was 2 decades at the bare minimum focusing just on research. If we start focusing on building our research and scientific capabilities, we will hopefully see results in 5 to 10 years,”.

Nithin Kamath warns that India cannot afford to be mediocre in AI. Being mediocre won’t be an option,” he says, emphasising the potential long-term consequences for India’s global standing. His comments highlight the urgent need for systemic change in India’s approach to AI innovation and research.

Source: https://economictimes.indiatimes.com/magazines/panache/why-is-india-behind-china-in-ai-race-zerodhas-nithin-kamath-blames-jugaad-mentality-for-it-amid-deepseek-buzz/articleshow/117695052.cms?from=mdr