
Artificial intelligence is globally the most trending topic. With new AI software and technologies, people have increasingly become dependent on AI for almost everything. Of course, this AI boom has hit India as well, and it has been rapidly transforming India's economic and social landscape. Reportedly, AI is about to contribute approximately $450-500 billion to India's GDP this year. Therefore, this is the best time to check the opportunities and challenges of AI in India’s various essential sectors, including healthcare, agriculture, education, and finance.
India’s growth in AI is prominent; therefore, one must know the key trends that are shaping this growth:
Government support is key to the flourishing of any technological sector. The Indian government is extremely supportive of AI advancement since it has recognized the transformative potential of artificial intelligence. Therefore, there are multiple government-acknowledged initiatives like the National AI Strategy, which was introduced by NITI Aayog and focuses on integrating AI into key sectors to drive growth and social development.
India's startup ecosystem has gone through a significant surge in AI-driven enterprises. Currently, the reports say the market size is expected to reach $8 billion by 2025. Therefore, these AI startups are developing innovative solutions in areas like computer vision, natural language processing, and machine learning. If one knows, companies like Niki.ai and Tricog Health are at the forefront and offer cutting-edge AI products that address industry-specific challenges.
Well, AI has taken the forefront; therefore, the ethical use of AI and data privacy has become a great concern. Without resolving this, the use of AI can never be a good trend. Therefore, both the government and private sector are working towards establishing frameworks that ensure responsible AI development. This framework includes data sharing, algorithmic transparency, and preventing biases in AI systems.
The growth of AI has both positive and negative effects. Before knowing the harms caused by AI, here are some of the opportunities that AI presents:
AI has become one of the primary tools for innovation across various sectors. Starting from manufacturing to scientific research, AI is used in almost every other sector to boost advancement. In manufacturing, AI optimizes production lines to predict maintenance needs and enhance efficiency. In some other areas, like retail, AI analyzes consumer behavior to offer personalized recommendations and improve customer engagement, and drive sales. If AI innovations see more growth this year, these sectors will be the most beneficial.
AI taking jobs from humans is one of AI's most renowned side effects. That’s true, but there are even some exceptions. While AI automates certain tasks, it even creates new employment opportunities in different fields like data science, machine learning engineering, and AI product management. In the last few years, the demand for professionals skilled in AI has increased considerably. With AI advancement, this demand will increase further.
This is one of the best things that AI has been doing to lessen human effort. Repetitive tasks usually take a lot of time and restrict the human workforce from being creative. AI has streamlined this process, allowing human resources to focus on more strategic activities. This shift creates more opportunities to become creative and fosters innovation by freeing time for problem-solving and strategic planning.
It’s impossible that the growth of AI won’t have any negative side. Well, it has, and here are some challenges that must be overcome to boost the growth of AI in India.
The growth of AI is attractive, but the main problem lies at the core of this growth. At this point, at least in India, there are not many skilled professionals who can handle AI-related tasks. This gap is one of India's greatest challenges to address and solve for its future AI advancement. Without bridging this gap, it will be tough for the country to progress in AI innovation and implementation. Therefore, a thorough education is required to fill the talent gap.
The next thing that India must take care of if it wants progress in AI technologies is data availability. If one knows, AI systems mostly rely on high-quality data. Therefore, a consistent data supply chain is required for AI advancement. Inconsistent data availability and quality can restrict the effectiveness of AI applications across all sectors. Therefore, the Indian government and other private organizations must establish a standardized data collection and management system to overcome this barrier.
This is one of the most troublesome issues that India must address for smooth AI growth. The implementation of AI technologies is kind of costly for businesses, especially for small and medium-sized models. Therefore, this high cost often becomes a prohibitive factor for these businesses. Often, they don’t have enough cost to implement effective AI solutions. Therefore, the government must invest in finding readily available, cost-effective solutions that almost all types of businesses can afford.
The AI advancement in India is promising. Expectedly, this substantial growth will contribute toward the economic growth of the country and boost social development. AI growth has a significant impact on innovation, job creation, and productivity enhancement, but addressing certain challenges like skill shortages, data quality, and implementation costs is crucial. Once the process is smooth enough without many obstacles, India will have a long-lasting effect from this AI advancement.