MeitY has further fast tracked the pace for empanelling agencies providing AI computing infrastructure and cloud services. This would be the first step toward innovations in artificial intelligence, which well may go to help democratise availability of AI resources and bring scalable computing powers to startups, researchers, students, and academicians to propel AI development in India.
India AI Mission: Building AI Infrastructure for Innovation
The IndiaAI Mission shall build a scalable AI computing ecosystem by deploying 10,000 Graphics Processing Units to support various AI-based innovations, researches, and developments. This is for the use of various stakeholders in the emerging start-up, research and development, student, and academia communities in accessing the necessary computational power for modeling, simulating, and analyzing data with the assistance of AI.
In August 2024, MeitY floated an RFE on the CPP wherein it invited application from agencies in a position to provide the mandatory AI Compute and Cloud Services which will act as an infrastructure to fuel up the AI Ecosystem all across India.
Interest in the industry and Pre-bid Response:
There was keen interest displayed by the industry leaders almost instantaneously. That level of interest was further complemented by more than 50 dynamic participants at the pre-bid meeting conducted during August 2024. The CSPs, MSPs, MSMEs, and Data Center Service Providers had participated as applicants. This also calls for some introspection of how the spiking interest for the AI infrastructure itself forms the basis for the sense of urgency to prepare India’s workforce instantly for the tools that are going to be needed in AI research and applications.
The bids are closed within the same closing date for submitting the closing submissions. A day or so after conducting the pre-bid, MeitY again extended its last date to 28 Nov 2024 for making a submission of its bid. Thus, it incorporated the count of the 19 bidders who are coming from various domains of services that are interested in the process, thereby bidding at a highly competitive level and thus tendered this work at a very highly competitive note.
Bids and Scrutiny
The bids were formally opened on 2 December 2024, and 19 companies are now under technical evaluation. Every proposal will be evaluated by a technical evaluation committee based on the eligibility and the technical criteria set in the RFE. After the technical evaluation, all eligible bidders will be invited for a presentation of their proposed solution. Commercial Bids will also be opened later, but that will only happen for those who have passed technical evaluation.
The agencies competing for a place in the empanelment process range from established players to new entrants in the cloud computing and data center industry. Some of the key companies which submitted their proposals include the following:
- CloudThat Technologies Private Limited
- CMS Computers India Pvt Ltd
- E2E Networks Limited
- Jio Platforms Limited
- Tata Communications Limited
- Yotta Data Services Private Limited
The tenure of empanelment would be 36 months. However, beyond the term, any party could go beyond that in case they wanted. Above reason itself a long term cycle of operation for IndiaAI will absorb this increased demand within the years going forth in AI infrastructures and all proceeding evident on availability of stake holder engagement
IndiaAI Vision towards AI Empowerment in India.
The mission execution agency is not but the IndiaAI-implementation organization in the cause that helps to provoke AI innovation all around the country. Supporting the greater scheme of action put forth in making a new place among the leadership role in globalizing AI in future, the entity, IndiaAI, invests actively in equity enabling access to all for accessing AI-based infrastructure.
The primary objectives of IndiaAI include:
- Democratize AI access across all levels of society, ensuring that AI’s benefits reach various sectors and industries, including education, healthcare, and manufacturing.
- Foster technological self-reliance, positioning India as a leader in the AI space, driven by homegrown capabilities and expertise.
This technology needs to be placed in the interest of society and of global standards. Thus, a responsible and ethical AI practice requires the kind of appropriate regulatory environment.
This IndiaAI does not just take the path of developing AI technologies but is actually building an ecosystem of strong professionals and enthusiasts for AI that can contribute toward growth in terms of technology and the economy of the country.
Conclusion: A New Chapter for AI in India
This push by the Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology to democratize access to AI computing power heralds a new chapter in India’s journey to become a world leader in artificial intelligence. Offering 10,000 GPUs and partnering with the top industry players to offer AI infrastructure, the IndiaAI Mission is building an environment conducive to innovation and technological advancement.
Prospects for India shine the brightest under AI as empanelment continues with the ongoing process of the bidding process and agencies get formed. It is not just about revolutionizing research and development across the country but also gifting power to the next-generation leaders in AI to stake its claim at the global arena of AI.
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