Relevance: GS III (Science & Tech – AI & Indigenization) | Source: The hindu ; MeitY White Paper

1. The Context: Who Controls the Switch?

The Government of India has released a white paper titled “Democratising Access to AI Infrastructure.”

• The Core Insight: The future of Artificial Intelligence (AI) will not just be decided by who builds the best apps, but by who owns the Infrastructure (the “Compute”) that powers them.
• The Imbalance: India generates nearly 20% of the world’s data but hosts only 3% of global data center capacity. This forces Indian startups and researchers to rely on foreign tech giants, creating a strategic vulnerability.

2. Defining AI Infrastructure

It is the “physical-digital” layer required to build AI:

• Physical Layer: The hardware—Data Centers, GPUs (Graphics Processing Units), and high-performance energy systems.
• Digital Layer: The software—Datasets, foundation models, and governance frameworks.

3. The Solution: The “DPI” Approach

India rejects both total state control and total private monopoly. Instead, the white paper proposes a Digital Public Infrastructure (DPI) model:

• AI as a Utility: Treating “Compute” (processing power) like electricity or roads—a public good accessible to everyone, not just big corporations.
• Sovereign AI: Building domestic capacity so India controls its own data destiny. This involves Public-Private Partnerships (PPPs) to build scalable data centers.

UPSC Value Box

Q. With reference to India’s Artificial Intelligence ecosystem, consider the following statements:

1. AIRAWAT is an AI-specific supercomputer established at C-DAC, Pune.
2. Bhashini is a Digital Public Infrastructure (DPI) initiative aimed at enabling real-time language translation services.
3. The IndiaAI Mission focuses exclusively on regulating AI ethics and does not involve building infrastructure.

Which of the statements given above is/are correct?

(a) 1 only

(b) 1 and 2 only

(c) 2 and 3 only

(d) 1, 2 and 3

Correct Answer: (b)