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Artificial Intelligence is transforming business operations and workforce preparation. India's vision for Viksit Bharat in 2047 focuses on a quality education system that emphasizes skills and capabilities. With 1.5 million schools, 8.5 million teachers, and 260 million annual enrollments, India's education system is evolving to meet the demands of digital learning.
In this episode of the Analytics Insight Podcast, Priya Dialani speaks with Rahul Mehta, Co-Founder and CEO of the Mehta Family Foundation (MFF), and Dr. Ananth Grama, Professor of Computer Science at Purdue University and MFF Care Advisor, to discuss where academia, philanthropy, and technology come together for the next deep tech revolution for India.
Priya starts the conversation saying, “Enterprise tech is only as strong as its talent infrastructure.” India has long been known for its engineers, but the limitations posed by traditional curricula and outdated testing systems can’t be ignored. “The advent of AI is helping education move away from standardized to personalized,” she adds.
Dr. Grama elaborates, “What we can do today is magical. Computing now touches everything: healthcare, materials, agriculture, and defense.” He explains that success in AI and deep tech “requires creativity and multidisciplinary thinking,” not just coding skills. “We need to create a demand for people who think broadly, through research organizations and industries that look beyond immediate production needs,” he adds.
Speaking about MFF’s vision, Rahul shares, “Education is the way to generate economic prosperity for individuals as well as the country.” He highlights the urgent need for institutional transformation and mentions, “India used to have computer science. What we need now are distinct schools of AI and data science, each focused on domain-specific areas.”
He adds, “If we want India to succeed, we must increase both the capacity and depth of our education system. Even a single top Chinese university has more students than all 23 IITs combined.”
In Priya's words, AI is not just a technological revolution, but also a social one, connecting education, innovation, and enterprise for progress.
Dr. Grama concludes, “We live in very exciting times. What the foundation does for me is give back to a country that has given so much to us. The hope is to play even a small role in bringing meaningful change.”
