NEW DELHI: Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Tuesday called on India’s IT sector to take the lead in not only providing services but also building AI products, platforms and solutions that work for India and the world. “India’s IT sector is the backbone of services exports and a key driver of economic growth. AI represents both a huge opportunity and challenge for the sector. The fundamental change is that AI will not replace the IT field. That is changing it,” he told ANI.Prime Minister Narendra Modi said, “While general-purpose AI tools are widespread, enterprise-grade AI deployments are focused on specific areas. Incumbent IT companies continue to play a critical role in solving complex business problems.”Many saw the prime minister’s comments as encouraging India’s software services companies to develop new features and work on products and platforms, something many Indian IT companies don’t know about despite their deep pockets. Global technology giants are also facing challenges from AInative companies such as OpenAI and Anthropic.Prime Minister Modi said India should not only be a consumer of technology but also a creator and this is a fundamental pillar of the ‘Atmanirbhar Bharat’ principle. “My vision is for India to be among the top three AI powers in the world, not only in terms of consumption but also creation of AI. Our AI models will be deployed across the world, serving billions of people in their native languages. Our AI startups will be worth hundreds of billions of dollars and millions of quality jobs will be created,” the Prime Minister said.The Prime Minister also sought to address concerns about the impact of AI on jobs and vowed to equip young people with the skills they need. “We understand young people’s concerns about AI disrupting the job market. Preparation is the best antidote to fear. That’s why we’ve invested in upskilling and reskilling our workforce for an AI-driven future…We’re not approaching this as a problem of the future, but as an imperative of the present,” he said.“History has shown that technology will not eliminate jobs. The nature of jobs will change and new types of jobs will be created. While some jobs may be redefined, the digital transformation will also add new technology jobs to the Indian economy. History has taught us that with every innovation comes new opportunities, and the same will be true in the age of AI,” PM Modi said.
