With $525 Mn Budget, India to Setup 20 Centers for Research in AI, IoT and Quantum Computing

In a recently held event of 106th Indian Science Congress, Ashutosh Sharma, secretary of the Department of Science and Technology (DST), Government of India, announced that India will soon be setting up 20 physical cyber centers for research in future technologies including Artificial Intelligence (AI), Machine Learning (ML), Internet of Things (IoT) and Quantum Computing.
Under a national mission, a budget of Rs 3,660 crore (~ US$ 525.57 million) will be allocated for setting up these centers across India.
Starting from next financial year i.e 2020, these cyber centres that will work on the various areas of research and will be established in existing institute of excellence like IITs and IISc.
“There will be a rise of the intelligent machines… There will be cyber physical systems that will have the ability of perception, decision making, and action. There will also be greater linkages for example a network of driverless car will learn from the mistakes of one another,” said Sharma.
For a country, the future of science and technology lies in intelligent machines as well as intelligent infrastructure and many countries are investing hugely in AI and allied research, with China leading the so called “AI Race”.
Since the mid-2010s, many analysts have argued that a such a global arms race for better artificial intelligence has already begun. China is investing at least $7 billion through 2030, including $2 billion for a research park in Beijing. The French government is investing $1.8 billion in AI research until 2022. The UK government is pledging $30 million to build AI tech incubators.
TO recall, in early last year, a retired Vice Admiral of Pakistan, Arifullah Hussaini, had said that India is wasting money on it’s defence budget as the future of war is artificial intelligence.
Last year in March, ‘Invest India’, the government of India’s investment agency, has tied up with UAE Minister for AI and together both have had signed a bilateral Artificial Intelligence Bridge agreement that seeks to create economic benefits worth $20 billion during the next decade.
This was followed by an another agreement with Russia to increase cooperation in the field of AI, blockchain system, and explore the possibility of joint work in healthcare. This agreement also included quantum computing for increase cooperation between the two countries beside the other fields such as tourism, digital front and financial technology.
Source – Hindustan Times