Microsoft, IndiaAI join hands to train 5 lakh individuals on AI by 2026, set up productivity labs

The government’s artificial intelligence programme unit IndiaAI and Microsoft have partnered to train 5 lakh individuals, including students, educators, developers, government officials, and women entrepreneurs on AI by 2026, a senior company official said on Wednesday. Microsoft India and South Asia president, Puneet Chandok told PTI that the $3 billion investment announced by the company’s Chairman and chief executive officer (CEO) Satya Nadella will be on building tech, infrastructure and AI capacity and also on building the human capital in this country. “We had announced training for 20 lakh people last year. We have already trained 24 lakh. We have announced to train 1 crore people over the next five years. We have also signed an MoU with IndiaAI mission and as part of that, 5 lakh people will be trained,” Chandok said.

The government in March 2024 approved Rs 10,372 crore for the development of AI ecosystem in the country for five years.

Under the collaboration, AI Productivity Labs in 20 National Skill Training Institutes (NSTIs) and NIELIT centres will be set up across 10 states to train 20,000 educators and empower 1 lakh students with foundational AI courses in 200 Industrial Training Institutes (ITIs).

“We are also setting up one Centre of Excellence with the government on IndiaAI mission,” Chandok said.

Under the collaboration, the Centre of Excellence, “AI Catalysts” will be set up to promote rural AI innovation in tier 2 and tier 3 cities and equip 1 lakh innovators and developers through hackathons, community building, and an AI marketplace.

As part of the tie-up, Microsoft’s Founders Hub programme will extend benefits, including Azure credits, business resources, and mentorship, to up to 1,000 AI startups under the IndiaAI mission, fostering innovation and growth in India’s startup ecosystem. The collaboration will look at developing foundational models with Indic language support to address India’s linguistic diversity and unique requirements, ensuring cultural and contextual relevance.

Microsoft and IndiaAI will collaborate to create frameworks, standards, and evaluation metrics for responsible AI development, supporting the establishment of an AI safety institute in India.