AI action plan could potentially add $450-500 bn to India’s GDP by 2025: NASSCOM

Efficient use of data and artificial intelligence (AI) can potentially add $450-$500 billion to the country’s GDP by 2025, according to the National Association of Software and Services Companies (NASSCOM). 

India can become a leader in building a holistic data utilisation and AI ecosystem, especially at a time when the economy has faced a setback due to the Covid-19 pandemic, according to an action plan by the information technology (IT) industry body. 

The organisation recently revealed the action plan in its report “Unlock Value from Data and AI: The Indian Opportunity,” in a virtual event attended by the Minister of Electronics and IT, Ravi Shankar Prasad.

“Data and AI’s true potential emerges from its ability to drive transformation across multiple sectors through a diverse range of applications. The report articulates the key structural steps that India needs to take to realise the value of this opportunity,” Debjani Ghosh, President, NASSCOM said in a statement.

If the AI ecosystem is built on time, it could also support governments and businesses for effective Covid-19 response and faster economic recovery, along with aiding in greater participation from the private sector and entrepreneurs, the report said.

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The report calls for coordinated programmes across the five building blocks: strategy, data, technology stack, talent and execution.

Specifically, three key interventions are required for a data economy in the country. This includes identifying datasets of national importance with each ministry with specific use cases. Second, launching a programme to create a marketplace of data and derived assets and third, establishing a central agency for defining and enforcing data standards, according to the organisation. 

The report also showcased that, in the near term, data and AI could support governments and businesses for effective Covid-19 response and economic recovery.

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NASSCOM said the report has been reviewed by industry leaders such as Rishad Premji, chairman, Wipro; N. Chandrasekaran, chairman, Tata Sons; Anant Maheshwari, president, Microsoft India; and UB Pravin Rao, chairman, NASSCOM. The recommendations have also been presented to the Prime Minister of India.

“India has the potential to become a global hub for data and AI. The moment is now, to support and grow a vibrant AI ecosystem in India,” Anant Maheshwari, President, Microsoft India, commenting during the virtual launch of the report said.

Additionally, NASSCOM announced that it would be hosting the ‘Xperience AI summit’ from 1 to 4 September.

The AI summit will be conducted in partnership with the Telangana AI mission and will bring together stakeholders in the ecosystem to build on the action plan on how AI can help India’s economic revival.  The summit will focus on four key themes -- building AI solutions in India, scaling its adoption, India’s AI policies and thought leadership in AI.