At a recent press briefing, Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) spokesperson Randhir Jaiswal shared the update, adding that India is also committed to advancing its own AI capabilities. “The French President has invited Prime Minister Modi, and India has accepted the invitation. We will share further details about the summit soon,” Jaiswal said. He emphasized that India is developing a robust AI program in parallel, aiming to establish itself as a key player in the field of AI technology.

The AI Action Summit in France will bring together a diverse array of experts, from government officials and tech CEOs to academics and artists, providing a platform for cross-sector collaboration on the future of AI. The event will focus on action-oriented discussions around shaping the global landscape of artificial intelligence and its societal implications.

In addition to engaging on the international stage, India has been making significant strides in strengthening its own AI infrastructure. Jaiswal noted that India is in discussions with various partners to further develop its AI program, including collaborations in the technology sector. His remarks also highlighted that the Indian government is preparing to host open-source AI models like DeepSeek on Indian servers.

This move comes after Chinese startup DeepSeek, known for its open-source reasoning model R1, made waves by challenging the notion that large amounts of GPU hardware are needed to build advanced AI models. In response to this, India is setting up a portal where startups and researchers can access GPUs at more affordable rates, significantly enhancing the country’s capacity to develop AI models and solutions.

Information and Broadcasting Minister Ashwini Vaishnaw also confirmed that India would soon begin hosting these open-source models on Indian servers. He said the government has already worked out the necessary infrastructure, including server capacity, to support the initiative. This aligns with India’s broader goal to position itself as a leader in AI research and development.

As the global AI landscape continues to evolve, India’s participation in the AI Action Summit and its ongoing investment in AI technology signal the country’s growing role in shaping the future of artificial intelligence. The collaboration with international partners, along with the strengthening of domestic AI capabilities, reflects India’s commitment to technological innovation and its ambition to contribute meaningfully to the global AI conversation.

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The government’s portal will host open-source models, including AI frameworks like DeepSeek, on Indian servers. Vaishnaw revealed that the logistics for setting up the servers, including the necessary capacity and infrastructure, have already been finalized. He emphasized that the portal would offer GPUs to users at significantly lower prices, making AI resources more accessible.

“We are going to do this very soon. Already, the team has worked out the details regarding the servers required, how much capacity is needed, and all other necessary information. We will be hosting open-source models on Indian servers very soon,” said Vaishnaw.

This development comes at a time when China’s DeepSeek, a startup that has made waves with its open-source reasoning model R1, challenges the traditional view that building frontier AI models requires vast amounts of GPU resources. DeepSeek trained its model using over 2,000 GPUs, while models like OpenAI’s ChatGPT were trained with around 25,000 GPUs, underlining the disparity in GPU needs between different AI models.

To make this powerful technology accessible, the Indian government has committed to subsidizing the use of GPUs. The government will offer a 40 percent subsidy on common compute facilities, reducing the cost for students to under Rs 100 per hour. Currently, India has approximately 10,000 GPUs ready, out of the planned 18,000, with a focus on high-end GPUs to support AI development.

Vaishnaw also highlighted that the AI mission in India would focus on solving large-scale, population-centric challenges. “Our focus will be on utilizing the power of AI to solve problems in sectors like healthcare, education, agriculture, logistics, weather forecasting, and even areas like glacier measurement and flood prediction,” he added.

The government’s AI initiative, which is part of the broader vision of “Making AI in India” and “Making AI Work for India,” includes a comprehensive, national-level AI mission with a budget allocation of Rs 10,371.92 crore, approved in March 2024. As part of this mission, the Indian government will provide subsidies on AI compute power for the next four years, ensuring sustainability and further cost reductions over time.

This push for greater AI accessibility aligns with India’s long-term goals of empowering students, researchers, and startups to drive innovation and foster cutting-edge AI applications that can tackle the country’s most pressing challenges.

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