India is all set to launch its indigenously developed Artificial Intelligence (AI) model in the upcoming 6-8 months. The indigenously developed AI model is set to address Indian contextual and linguistic needs owing to the prevalence of diverse cultures and regional languages across India. It will be a cost-effective model developed in a time-bound manner with algorithmic efficiency. It is believed that the model will be equipped to serve the diverse needs of our nation through a high level of innovation tailored specifically for Indian users. 

Ashwini Vaishnav, India’s IT minister, has also invited proposals from startups, companies, etc to support the development of foundational AI models. The participants can range from startups & researchers to even entrepreneurs. The government looks forward to collaborating with such partners and creating state-of-the-art AI models using Indian datasets. This initiative aims to establish indigenous AI models- Large Multimodal Models, Large Language Models (LLM), or Small Language Models (SLM), to address India-specific challenges across various sectors.  

India’s Own AI: Common Compute Facility 

To achieve the dream of India’s own foundational AI model, a huge computing infrastructure has been developed that inhabits 18,693 GPUs, including 12,896 H100, 1,480 H200, and 7,200 MI 200 300 units, significantly exceeding the initial target of 10,000 GPUs. Just to have an idea, China’s DeepSeek was trained on 2000 GPUs while the US’s ChatGPT was on 25,000 GPUs. 

The top bidders for the supply of GPUs include Yotta Data Services, Tata Communication Ltd, and Jio Platforms among others. Talking of preparations, approximately 10,000 GPUs are already available and the technical partners have committed to deploy them on a priority basis.  

Read about DeepSeek here: Let's Dive Into How China’s AI “DeepSeek R1” Plans to Dominate the AI Race

India’s Own AI to Focus on Public Benefit 

India’s AI mission focuses on developing homegrown AI-powered applications across key sectors like agriculture, healthcare, weather forecasting, and disaster management. So far, 18 applications have been identified to leverage AI for societal benefits, tackling challenges such as climate change, learning disabilities, and agritech advancements—ensuring AI serves millions for the greater good.

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India’s Own AI through a Cost-effective Infrastructure 

To facilitate a democratic approach and accessibility for all, India's computing facility is to be available at highly competitive rates, with GPU usage costing approximately ₹115.85 per hour—well below the global benchmark of $2.5–$3 per hour. At the same time, High-end computing is priced at ₹150 per hour, but a 40% government subsidy brings the cost down to under ₹100 per hour for standard computing access.