India's AI Race: Verdict Only Clear in a Decade, Say Experts

India's position in the global artificial intelligence race is a subject of intense debate. According to AI experts Pratyush Kumar and Rajan Anandan, the country is not sitting out the game, but is instead in its early stages, with a final verdict on its success likely only clear in the next eight to ten years.

Anandan pointed to recent developments as evidence of momentum. He noted that over $400 billion in AI capital expenditure has been announced by major Indian conglomerates and global hyperscalers, which will help unlock much-needed computing power. He also highlighted the launch of several ground-up models from Indian companies and institutions, such as Sarvam and BharatGen, as a significant first step.

A key area of focus is the application layer, with voice AI identified as a potential first billion-dollar revenue category for Indian enterprises. The experts argued that India's approach differs from global frontier labs. Instead of building massive, expensive models, the strategy is to create smaller, more affordable models tailored to specific Indian contexts and languages. Kumar noted that Sarvam's models are already significantly cheaper than alternatives from frontier labs, making them a cost-effective solution for local needs.

On the question of India's potential to win across the AI stack, Anandan expressed optimism about power and infrastructure, citing India's renewable energy advantage. While acknowledging that India is early in the chip-making space, he suggested that Indian companies could become leading hyperscalers within a decade. For models, he called for at least ten companies like Sarvam to emerge.

Kumar emphasized the need for a long-term view, stressing the importance of intensifying R&D commitment to build core innovation capabilities. He argued that while India should deploy the best available technology quickly, it must also develop its own self-reliant AI story to avoid a widening gap in the future. The conversation underscored that the true measure of India's success in AI will only be known with time, as the country builds its capabilities and carves out its unique path in this transformative technology.