From 'Make AI for India' to 'Make AI Work for India': Union Budget 2023

Nirmala Sitharaman, the Union Finance Minister, outlined a vision for not just "Make AI for India," but also "Make AI work for India," in the context of how artificial intelligence is currently upending life in all sectors.

What is new in the bunch?

To realise the goals of "Make AI for India" and "Make AI work for India," the Union Finance Minister announced the establishment of three centres of excellence for artificial intelligence. According to Sitharaman, these centres would be established in prestigious educational institutions to create cutting-edge applications for the fields of agriculture, health, and other areas.

The 2023 Union Budget was announced by Union finance minister Nirmala Sitharaman, who dubbed it "Amrit Kaal's first budget." She stated that the government's goal is to have a knowledge-based, technology-driven economy with strong public finances and a strong financial sector. The country will be guided in this endeavor by the seven priorities of inclusive development, reaching the last mile, infrastructure investment, unleashing potential, green growth, youth power, and financial sector.

The finance minister added that the government's efforts since 2014 have led to a double-digit increase in per capita income and India's rise to the fifth largest economy in the world, describing India's economy as a "bright star."

She also emphasized the COVID-19 response, which included providing free food grains to over 80 crore people, and saw the current global challenges as an opportunity for India to expand its role in the global economy. She said that India would have a chance to help create a new world order by holding the G20 presidency.

Atul Rai, Co-Founder & CEO of Staqu Technologies, shared his thoughts on budget 2023 regarding the expanding Artificial Intelligence and technology industry in India. He stated that he solemnly supports the Government of India's goal to establish a strong AI ecosystem in India and utilize potential AI professionals. The government's AI centers of excellence have the ability to brilliantly realize their goals of "making AI work for India" and "make AI in India."

Atul rai stated, "By training and incentivizing adequate resources, both human and material," the government's support for AI and technology advancement in the country can further facilitate the industry's development.

"The upcoming opportunities in Industry 4.0 have the potential to make 5G-enabled cutting-edge applications more readily available to customers, thereby facilitating industry expansion." With increased accessibility for widespread emerging technologies, research and development, and upskilling, we anticipate a fruitful year ahead," Rai continued.

Digital public infrastructure for agriculture will be constructed as an open source, open standard, and interoperable public good, according to Union finance minister Nirmala Sitharaman.

According to Sitharaman, "this will enable inclusive, farmer-centric solutions through relevant information services for crop planning and health," enhanced access to farm inputs, credit, and insurance, assistance with crop estimation, market intelligence, and support for the expansion of the agri-tech industry and start-ups.

A National Digital Library for children and adolescents will be established, among other digital touchpoints, to facilitate the availability of high-quality books across languages, genres, levels, and geography, as well as device-independent accessibility.