New Delhi: Graphics Processing Units (GPUs) will be available on the IndiaAI compute portal for as low as Rs 67/hour, Union IT Minister Ashwini Vaishnaw said on Thursday.
Vaishnaw, Minister for Electronics and IT, on the first anniversary of the IndiaAI mission, launched an array of initiatives, including the IndiaAI compute portal and dataset platform AIKosha, intended to democratize access to AI and drive innovation forward.
The IndiaAI compute portal will provide access to compute more than 18,000 GPUs, cloud storage and other AI services to students, startups, researchers, academia, and government departments.
“We have today a common compute facility for 14,000 GPUs, which is much more than what we had targeted. 10,000 GPUs is what we had targeted. We already have 14,000 GPUs now, with another 4,000 in the pipeline, and many more come in the upcoming quarters,” the minister said.
The cost of using these GPUs is historically low at Rs 67 per hour, he informed.
This will offer a huge advantage to startups, application developers, researchers, and students, he said.
Citing India’s mission to the moon, Vaishnaw said the mission was conducted at a fraction of the cost of other countries’ moon missions, and the same approach will be applied for building the country’s own foundational model, and India will build it at a fraction of cost of what other countries are doing it.
“Our preparedness for India’s own foundational model is progressing excellently well. We have got 67 applications for creating the foundational models,” he said, adding that 22 of these applications are for Large Language Models (LLMs).
He said the government is holding and formalizing extensive consultations with experts regarding the development of Indigenous chipsets — “something which will change the course of our country”.
In the coming 3-4 years, India should have its own GPUs competing with the world and take a seat among the top five technology nations of the world, the minister asserted.
GPUs available on the platform include AMD 300X, AMD 325X, NVIDIA H200, NVIDIA H100, AWS Trainium and Inferentia, and NVIDIA GeForce, among others.
MeitY Secretary S Krishnan said the launch of the compute portal will enhance the way AI gets rolled out and implemented across the country.
“The AI Compute Portal is the largest component of the India AI mission. Almost about 45 percent of funds (of India AI Mission) are earmarked for that particular area,” Krishnan said.
Technology, especially AI, can be an enabling factor in achieving the 2047 Viksit Bharat dream, he added.
The ministry also launched AIKosha — an all-in-one dataset platform providing compute, datasets, tools and a secure sandbox environment for researchers, entrepreneurs, and startups to build AI applications and solutions.
High-quality datasets from multiple ministries will be available for model builders and developers to work with and launch India-specific AI models.
In March last year, the cabinet approved the IndiaAI mission with a budget outlay of Rs 10,371.92 crore. It intends to establish a comprehensive ecosystem catalyzing AI innovation through public-private partnerships.
The mission is implemented by ‘IndiaAI’ Independent Business Division (IBD) under Digital India Corporation (DIC).
Further, Vaishnaw informed that the government is setting up 27 India AI data labs in Tier 2 and Tier 3 cities.
He also shared that the government is training its officials and civil servants to improve their capacity and potential, through more than thousands of courses.
“More than a million civil servants have actually registered for the courses, and about 9 and a half lakh civil servants have already completed the course,” he said.
Foundational level courses in data and AI for 10th and 12th grade students are being created, so that the generations to come are well prepared for today’s world, Vaishnaw added.
He said over 150 universities will be getting the latest foundational tools by next year for conducting research in AI.
In the coming five years, India will emerge as a major power in the deep-tech space, he said.
IndiaAI also launched the Competency Framework for AI for public sector officials. It defines structured learning pathways and competency benchmarks to ensure that public sector officials are well-equipped to harness AI’s potential.
The framework aims to provide a foundational understanding of AI, identify opportunities to integrate AI, enable informed policymaking and regulatory oversight, and develop targeted training and capacity-building programs.
As many as 30 startups from diverse sectors, who are shortlisted for the next stage of the IndiaAI Innovation Challenge, were also recognised by the minister here.
Students under the India AI Fellowship program were awarded.
