'AI will drive India economy, can add $957 Bn and lift income by 15 percent'

Artificial Intelligence (AI) is going to drive the economy of India and can add $957 billion by 2013, said a new research report by Accenture.

AI has the potential to increase India’s annual growth rate of gross value added (GVA) by 1.3 percentage points, added the report titled ‘Rewire for Growth’.

“The economic boost will be driven by innovative AI technologies that enable people to make more efficient use of their time and do what humans do best – create, imagine and innovate new things. What’s needed is a clear, long-term vision, and a multi-stakeholder action plan that balances growth with the ethical questions posed by AI,” said Rekha M Menon, senior managing director and chairman, Accenture India.

The report outlined the strength of India’s AI innovation ecosystem relative to other G20 economies in universities, startups, large businesses, policymakers and multi-stakeholder partnerships.

Indian firms across diverse sectors such as healthcare, education, auto, banking and retail are increasingly tapping AI to transform their businesses. E-tailers like Flipkart and Amazon India are exploring AI solutions to cut costs and overheads, and to have superior advantage over other.

In 2016, India ranked third among G20 countries measured by the number of AI startups although it received substantially less funding than the United States and China. AI startups have witnessed higher than average growth in India since 2011.

Report also pointed out what India can do to achieve its full potential in technology. India needs to concentrate efforts on developing a collaborative AI ecosystem at the national level.

Policy makers, civil society and the private sector must come together to develop a long-term vision and an action plan to increase spending on core AI research, facilitate collaboration for innovation, and create opportunities for smaller players, it added.

Indian technical universities have been pioneering fundamental research in AI but are not doing enough to strengthen the AI ecosystem, unlike their global counterparts such as the universities of Cambridge and Oxford in the UK.

More than 88% of businesses in India surveyed by Accenture earlier this year expect to make moderate-to-extensive investments in one or more AI-related technologies over the next three years.

Besides, the digital drive can play a key role in driving AI innovations in India, in line with global trends. Also, small and large companies alike will need an enabling environment and policy framework to advance AI-led growth.