New Delhi, Jan 30, India is all set to launch its own safe & secure indigenous AI model at an affordable cost. Union Minister for Electronics & Information Technology, Railways, Information & Broadcasting, Ashwini Vaishnaw today announced this in New Delhi at Electronics Niketan.
Interacting with the media, the Union Minister Shri Vaishnaw said that the Indian AI model is a timely step as India is a trusted nation among the comity of nations & therefore it will help India emerge as a more reliable technological powerhouse of ethical AI solutions in the days to come. Backed by a high-end common computing facility, the India AI mission is now closer to customising indigenous AI solutions for the Indian context using Indian languages. He said that scientists, researchers, developers and coders are working on multiple foundational models in this regard & with the given pace, the Union Minister expressed hope that the Indian AI model is likely to be ready within 6 months. The Union Minister Shri Ashwini Vaishnaw said that “Our Prime Minister’s economic thinking is very inclusive. He believes in making modern technology accessible to everyone to ensure the people at the bottom of the pyramid are economically empowered.”
The AI model is beginning with the computation facility of roughly 10000 GPUs. Soon the remaining 8693 GPUs will be added. It will largely benefit researchers, students & developers in the beginning. The Technical partners who are participating in the mission have expressed a lot of confidence in the ability of the mission to deliver its objective of democratising access to computing & that too at a very competitive rate. Compared to global models computation costing 2.5 to 3 dollars per hour usage, India’s AI Model computation will cost less than less than 100 rupees per hour after 40% government subsidy. The attractive half yearly & annual plans will further make it more affordable.
Within 10 months of the launch of India AI Mission, Ministry of Electronics & Information Technology, has been able to get an unprecedented response & create a high end & robust common computing facility of about 18,693 Graphic Processing Unit, GPUs. It is about nine times of what Open Source Model DeepSeek has & about two third of what ChatGPT has. Answering queries of the media, the Union Minister said that DeepSeek can get hosted on Indian servers after security checks so that coders, developers & designers can take benefit of its Open Source code.
Safety and ethical deployment of AI Model remains top priority for the government. Expressing this commitment, the Union Minister announced that India is establishing an AI Safety Institute, adopting a techno-legal approach
The Key safety-related projects in this regard include following 8 simultaneous efforts to ensure the privacy of data along with ethical auditing of algorithmic efficiency.
Machine Unlearning (IIT Jodhpur)
Synthetic Data Generation (IIT Roorkee)
AI Bias Mitigation Strategy (NIT Raipur)
Explainable AI Framework (Defence Institute of Advanced Technology, Pune & Minecraft Technologies)
Privacy Enhancing Strategies (IIT Delhi, IIIT Delhi, IIT Dharwad & Telecom Engineering Centre, TEC)
AI Ethical Certification Framework (Tool Nishpaksh being developed at IIIT Delhi & TEC)
AI Algorithm Auditing Framework (Tool Parakh being developed by Civic Data Labs )
AI Governance Testing Framework (Amrita Vidyapeetham & Telecom Engineering Centre)
Common Compute Facility is the strong foundation for Democratic AI Development
Under the India AI Mission, a huge computing infrastructure has been developed, surpassing global benchmarks in a short time. The facility now houses 18,693 GPUs, including 12,896 H100, 1,480 H200, and 7,200 MI 200 300 units, significantly exceeding the initial target of 10,000 GPUs. To put this capacity into perspective, DeepSeek was trained on 2,000 GPUs, while ChatGPT required 25,000 GPUs. This vast computing power will not only accelerate research, model training, help ethical AI algorithm development and foster innovation in India’s AI ecosystem.
A common compute platform has been created, ensuring accessibility to all stakeholders. Approximately 10,000 GPUs are already available, and technical partners have expressed confidence in the mission’s capability to deliver world-class AI solutions. Following approval, this facility will soon be operational for widespread use.
Empanelment of AI services on cloud
Government of India had approved the IndiaAI Mission with a Budgetary outlay of Rs 10372 Cr in March 2024. The objective was to bridge the gaps in the existing AI ecosystem and enable the emergence of India as a hub of development of AI technology and applications. IndiaAI Mission is being implemented through 7 key pillars and one of the key pillars is enabling the availability of 10,000 GPUs for AI Compute Infrastructure. Towards this objective, The Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology (MeitY), through IndiaAI Independent Business Division (IBD), published a Request for Empanelment (RFE) on August 16, 2024, to empanel AI services on cloud and offer the services to academia, MSMEs, startups, research community, governments, public sector agencies and other entities approved by IndiaAI via the CPP portal.
19 bidders that included Cloud Service Providers (CSPs), Managed Service Providers (MSPs), and Data Center Service Providers submitted proposals. After initial scrutiny as per the pre qualification criterion 13 bidders were invited to make presentations to the technical evaluation committee. As per the technical evaluation, ten bidders were found to be eligible for opening of financial bids. The financial bids of the 10 technically qualified bidders were opened on January 22, 2025. The 10 bidders listed below have offered their commercials for various categories of AI compute units (GPUs) quoted.
CMS Computers India Pvt Ltd
Ctrls Datacenters Ltd
E2E Networks Limited
Jio Platforms Limited
Locuz Enterprise Solutions Limited
NxtGen Datacenter and Cloud Technologies Private Limited
Orient Technologies Limited
Tata Communications Limited
Vensysco Technologies Limited
Yotta Data Services Private Limited
These bidders have quoted diversified category of AI compute units (GPUs) that include Intel Gaudi 2, AMD MI300X, MI325 X, NVIDIA H100 (PCIe, NVL and SXM), NVIDIA H200 (PCIe, NVL and SXM), NVIDIA A100, NVIDIA, L40S, NVIDIA L4, AWS Inferentia2 and Aws Tranium. Bidders have also offered 8 GPU modules of NVIDIA and AMD.
As per the terms of empanelment, the bidder quoted the L1 rates for a particular category of compute unit will be empaneled first and all other bidders in that category of the compute unit will be eligible for empanelment if they agree to match the L1 bid.
Setting up IndiaAI Safety Institute
The Union Minister announced the setting up of IndiaAI Safety Institute under the Safe and Trusted Pillar of the IndiaAI Mission to address AI risks & Safety Challenges. The IndiaAI Safety Institute will work with all relevant stakeholders, including academia, startups, industry and government ministries/departments, towards ensuring safety, security and trust in AI. The Institute will advance indigenous research and development, based on Indian datasets and contextualized to India’s social, economic, cultural, and linguistic diversity. The Institute, incubated by IndiaAI Mission will be set up on a hub and spoke model with various research and academic institutions, private sector partners joining the hub and taking up projects under the Safe and Trusted Pillar of IndiaAI Mission. Under the Safe and Trusted pillar, the IndiaAI Mission has selected eight Responsible AI Projects against the first Expression of Interest (EoI).
Further IndiaAI has launched the 2nd round of Expression of Interest (EoI) open to Indian Academic Institutes/Organizations, Autonomous bodies, R&D Institutes/Organizations, Startups and Companies. Themes covered under the 2nd EoI include:
Watermarking & Labelling
ii. Ethical AI Frameworks
iii. AI Risk Assessment & Management
iv. Stress Testing Tools
v. Deep-fake Detection Tools
This initiative aims to benefit researchers, students, and the public with its low-cost, fast computing capabilities and its prompt results. The Indian AI Model will help promote innovation & develop citizen centric better governance tools including many industrial uses having humongous potential to harness technological benefits for the people at large.
India’s Own AI Model: Built for Local Context
Over the past one & half year, India has been developing a robust AI ecosystem framework to support its own foundational AI model. This model will address Indian linguistic and contextual needs while eliminating biases, ensuring inclusivity and promoting fairness. Leading developers and researchers are working towards completing multiple foundational models within 8 to 10 months, leveraging algorithmic efficiency to achieve cost-effective and timely development.
Experts believe that India’s AI model will meet the country’s diverse requirements, bringing forth a high level of innovation tailored for Indian users.
AI Applications to Benefit Citizens
The India AI Mission focuses on developing AI applications in critical sectors such as agriculture, healthcare, weather forecasting, and disaster management. Eighteen applications have been identified in these domains to harness AI for societal benefits. The initiative will address challenges such as climate change, learning disabilities, and agritech solutions, ensuring AI contributes to the well-being of millions.
Affordable Compute Facility for AI Development
India’s Compute facility is being offered at highly competitive rates. The cost per GPU hour is approximately ₹115.85, significantly lower than the global benchmark of $2.5–$3 per hour. High-end computing will be available at ₹150 per hour, with a 40% government subsidy reducing the cost to less than ₹100 per hour for common Compute access. This affordability ensures democratized AI access, empowering startups and researchers alike.
The initiative offers competitive six-month and annual compute rate packages. The facility has garnered international appreciation, including recognition at Davos, reinforcing India’s position as a trusted global AI hub.
Call for Proposals for Building India’s Foundational AI Models
Furthermore, the Union Minister also launched a Call for Proposals under the IndiaAI Mission to support the development of foundational AI models, inviting startups, researchers, and entrepreneurs to collaborate on creating state-of-the-art AI models using Indian datasets. This initiative aims to establish indigenous AI models, which can be Large Multimodal Models, Large Language Models (LLM), or Small Language Models (SLM), to address India-specific challenges across various sectors. These AI models must be trained on Indian datasets, ensuring linguistic, cultural, and contextual relevance.The objective is to create scalable and impactful AI solutions across sectors such as healthcare, education, agriculture, climate, and governance.
Proposals will be assessed based on several key criteria, including team capability, which evaluates expertise in AI/ML, prior experience, and the ability to execute high-impact projects. The approach and strategy will be reviewed for innovativeness, dataset strategy, model architecture, and sustainability plans. Timelines and milestones must present realistic development schedules with clear deliverables. The use cases section will be judged on creativity, feasibility, and the scalability of societal impact applications. Ethical compliance will require adherence to the DPDP Act, IT Act, and bias mitigation strategies. Scalability and sustainability will be examined based on industry benchmarks, long-term adaptability, and commercial viability. Lastly, financial viability will be assessed in terms of budget justification, funding sources, and cost-effectiveness.
Funding and support mechanisms include direct funding, which offers grants and AI compute credits with milestone-based disbursements, and equity-based investments, where additional funding is provided through mutual agreements. There are also co-financing options, allowing entities to secure additional funding from venture capitalists, angel investors, non-profits, or state and central government grants. Proposals will be accepted on a rolling submission basis and evaluated on a first-come, first-served approach.
Future Roadmap and Sustainability
The India AI Mission operates under a four-year sunset clause with long-term sustainability. As India advances in its semiconductor journey, the government is strategically developing its ecosystem with clarity and systematic planning. With over $30 billion invested in the semiconductor mission, India’s AI aspirations align with its broader technological vision.
The Union Minister said that DeepSeek and other foundational models can be hosted on Indian servers, similar to previous initiatives like LLaMA. He added, AI’s real impact lies in industrial applications beyond chatbots and image generation; It will address real-world challenges such as:
Health of oil drilling rigs
Railway ticketing optimization
Soil health monitoring for agriculture
Weather and cyclone prediction
The mission also emphasizes AI safety through real-time detection tools, deep-fake mitigation, and robust AI risk management strategies. Stanford ranks India among the top nations in AI education, with 240 universities offering AI courses and 100 universities equipped with 5G labs.
With a focus on democratic, inclusivity, affordability, and innovation, India is set to emerge as a global AI powerhouse, shaping the future of artificial intelligence for societal and industrial advancements.
The event was graced by Minister of state for electronics & information technology, Shri Jitin Prasada, Shri Abhishek Singh, Additional Secretary, MeitY and CEO, IndiaAI, Smt. Kavita Bhatia, COO, IndiaAI, Shri Nand Kumarum, P&CEO, NeGD & CEO, DIC and senior officials from MeitY.