Karnataka IT/BT minister Priyank Kharge said that out of the top 50 artificial intelligence (AI) cities in the world, Bengaluru ranks fifth.
During his speech at the 27th edition of the Bengaluru Tech Summit 2024, he said, “We have a 57 per cent AI adaptability rate in the Indian ecosystem, followed by the US with 24 per cent and Germany. The demography is a natural advantage that India has when it comes to talent. The government needs to focus heavily on skills and education. There are 27 centres of excellence ranging from agriculture to aerospace, and everyone is thriving on AI.”
The IT/BT minister further said Karnataka needs to lay a solid foundation for skills and complement it with “incubation centres, innovation policies for incubators, R&D policies, global market access programmes, and capital”. Moreover, Kharge said that the government aims to ensure a $50 billion output from Karnataka by 2029.
“We are spending Rs 300 crore to ensure that the human resource comes from Karnataka, which has the best skill set. We skill the talent pool locally; they work globally. I strongly believe that we need to tap into the value we have in our human resources right here in the country, and it starts with Bengaluru in Karnataka,” Kharge further said.
Kharge emphasized that the relationship between industry, academia, and government is always evolving. He believes the government should provide platforms for collaboration, while the private sector must actively engage with the government to highlight emerging technologies and their potential. He stressed that platforms fostering communication between these sectors are crucial for developing AI models that address national challenges and drive solutions at scale.