In News:

• The growth of Artificial Intelligence (AI) has been remarkable in recent years. In 2018, a 340-million-parameter AI model was considered large, whereas models like ChatGPT now have 1.8 trillion parameters.
• As part of its ambition to make the digital economy worth USD 1 trillion by 2028, India is focusing on AI sovereignty and investing in semiconductors and AI technologies to achieve this goal.

What is Sovereign AI?

Definition

• Sovereign AI refers to a nation’s ability to develop, control, and deploy AI using its own resources, including infrastructure, data, workforce, and business networks.
• This involves not just developing AI models but also creating infrastructure and nurturing homegrown talent to lead AI advancements within the country.

Key Aspects of Sovereign AI

• National Control: Ensures AI technologies align with a country's laws, regulations, and ethical standards.
• Data Sovereignty: Emphasizes control of data within the country’s borders, protecting privacy, security, and national interests.
• AI in Governance: Generative AI is transforming industries, markets, and governance, with AI-powered tools assisting professionals and governments.
• Ethical Considerations: Countries define security protocols and ethical frameworks to govern the use of AI technologies.
• Strategic Autonomy: Reduces reliance on foreign technologies, encouraging domestic development in AI to achieve strategic independence.
• Economic Competitiveness: AI is crucial for industrial innovation. Without it, nations risk falling behind in the global economy.

Growth and Importance of AI

Evolution of AI Models

• In 2018, a 340-million-parameter model was considered a significant achievement.
• Today, ChatGPT uses 1.8 trillion parameters, and Google’s Gemini uses 1.5 trillion parameters. In comparison, China’s DeepSeek has a model with 240 billion parameters.
• Parameters are the internal variables of AI models, adjusted during training to improve their performance and accuracy.

Strategic Applications

• Sovereign AI plays a pivotal role in critical sectors such as:
  • Defense
  • Healthcare
  • Transportation
  • Governance
• It helps redefine industries, boost innovation, and streamline operations across various sectors.

India’s Position in Sovereign AI

AI Infrastructure Development

• Tata Group and Reliance are building AI infrastructure in India, including the development of Large Language Models (LLMs).
• India has allocated USD 1.2 billion for a sovereign AI project under the IndiaAI Mission, which includes creating an AI supercomputer with thousands of chips.

Government Initiatives

• The IndiaAI Mission is designed to boost India’s AI capabilities by building infrastructure, fostering talent, and supporting innovation within the country.

Global AI Compact

• A Global AI Compact has been proposed to ensure equitable access to AI technologies across nations.
• The compact advocates for sharing AI resources globally while promoting cooperation and addressing challenges associated with AI governance.