‘Make in India’ must now be expanded to ‘Make AI in India’: AAP’s Raghav Chadha in Rajya Sabha

NEW DELHI: Aam Aadmi Party MP Raghav Chadha on Tuesday stressed the urgent need for India to lead the Artificial Intelligence (AI) revolution, not trail behind it. He said, “Ye samay AI ka hai!” (This is the era of AI), warning that the world is rapidly advancing in AI while India risks being left behind.

During Zero Hour in the Rajya Sabha, Chadha stated, “The US has ChatGPT, Gemini, Grok. China has DeepSeek and Baidu. These countries are miles ahead because they began investing years ago. The real question is: will India be a consumer of AI or a creator of AI?”

Citing a stark contrast in investments, he said, “The US has committed over 500 billion dollars to AI, China over 137 billion dollars, while India’s mission stands at a modest one billion.

The AAP MP reminded the House that from 2010 to 2022, the US filed 60% of the world’s AI patents, China 20%, and India just 0.5%.

“India has the maximum calibre, the most hardworking talent. We contribute 15% of the global AI workforce and have the third-highest AI skill penetration in the world. But if we don’t act now, we will lose this edge,” he emphasized.

“India’s ‘Make in India’ vision must expand to include the future—Make AI in India,” he asserted.

Raghav Chadha warned that AI is not just about technology—it’s about economic power, national security, and sovereignty. “We cannot depend on foreign AI models. India must build its own,” the AAP MP said.

He also listed some suggestions to make India an AI powerhouse.

“Develop indigenous AI chips and high-performance computing infrastructure to support domestic innovation, incentivise chip manufacturing and set up dedicated AI computing systems across India, create sovereign AI models to ensure data protection, national security, and economic independence, provide generous research grants to Indian institutions and AI startup,” he said.

“140 crore Indians are asking–will we remain AI consumers or become AI producers?” Chadha said in Parliament. “The time for policy papers is over. The time for action is now,” he added.

He urged the government to announce a clear, time-bound National AI Strategy with robust funding, institutional collaboration, and infrastructure development.

“India has the talent, the drive, and the potential. What we need now is vision and investment. The world is not waiting—neither should we,” Chadha said. (ANI)