India’s artificial intelligence (AI) strategy, aligned with Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s vision of democratizing technology, is set to tackle India-specific challenges and boost opportunities and job creation. By 2026, India is poised for a significant transformation, emerging as the world’s third most competitive nation in AI. The country has witnessed a remarkable surge in AI talent concentration, tripling since 2016, propelling it to a top-three position in Stanford University’s Global AI Vibrancy Tool.
Various government initiatives, such as ‘IndiaAI FutureSkills,’ are nurturing an AI talent pipeline, a key component of the IndiaAI mission, emphasizing talent development and research. The government recently highlighted the potential for job generation in fields like data science and data curation through AI, with over 8.65 lakh candidates enrolled in various courses, including 3.20 lakh in AI/Big Data Analytics technologies.
The IT Ministry has launched ‘FutureSkills PRIME,’ a program aimed at re-skilling and up-skilling IT professionals in ten emerging technologies, including AI. To date, more than 18.56 lakh candidates have registered on the Future Skills PRIME Portal, with over 3.37 lakh completing their courses, as reported by Minister of State for Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises, Shobha Karandlaje.
According to a recent Nasscom report, “Advancing India’s AI skills,” India’s AI talent pool is projected to grow from 6 lakh–6.5 lakh professionals to over 12.50 lakh professionals by 2027, reflecting a 15% compound annual growth rate. India’s increasing AI talent base is also evident in global developer engagement, with India ranking as the second-largest contributor to GitHub AI projects worldwide in 2024, accounting for 19.9% of all AI projects.
