OpenAI announced institutional partnerships with six leading Indian universities and three major edtech platforms on Tuesday. This move marked the company’s shift from individual AI adoption to campus-wide deployment.
The first cohort includes IIT Delhi, IIM Ahmedabad, AIIMS New Delhi, Manipal Academy of Higher Education (MAHE), University of Petroleum and Energy Studies (UPES), and Pearl Academy. The initiative is expected to support over one lakh students, faculty, and staff in the next year by providing access to enterprise-grade ChatGPT Edu, faculty enablement programs, and responsible-use frameworks.
Unlike previous efforts focused on providing access to AI tools, OpenAI said the new model aims at embedding AI across teaching, research, evaluation, and campus operations. The partnerships are designed to align with academic integrity standards and ethical safeguards.
“By 2030, nearly 40% of core skills workers rely on today will change, driven largely by AI,” said Raghav Gupta, head of education at OpenAI India. He said educational institutions will play a key role in bridging the gap between AI capability and real-world applications.
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At IIT Delhi, AI will be integrated across undergraduate, postgraduate, and doctoral programs, as well as executive education. The collaboration will also include hackathons and industry engagement.
IIM Ahmedabad will roll out ChatGPT Edu across degree and executive programmes, embedding AI literacy in management disciplines such as strategy, finance, and public policy.
AIIMS New Delhi plans to explore the use of applied AI in medical education, including simulations and clinical documentation, through a proposed AI in Medical Education Hub.
MAHE has established an interdisciplinary partnership across engineering, health sciences, business, and hospitality. UPES will focus on engineering law and health sciences, while Pearl Academy will use AI for design, fashion technology, and digital media applications.
OpenAI has established partnerships with PhysicsWallah, upGrad, and HCL GUVI to provide AI courses it has developed for students and early-career professionals. The move signals a broader shift in India’s higher education landscape towards structured, institution-led AI adoption.