U.S.-India Partnership Could Accelerate AI Adoption

NEW DELHI — India could play a major role in helping the United States strengthen its position in the global race to adopt artificial intelligence, as major American technology companies expand their AI investments across the country, according to an article in Arab News.

The article said U.S. companies including Google, Microsoft and Amazon have already committed billions of dollars to develop AI hubs in India, investments that could help make American-designed technology a core part of the digital infrastructure in the Global South’s largest economy.

The article, written by Ylli Bajraktari and Dhruva Jaishankar, argued that the direction of global digital infrastructure will carry major geopolitical consequences. If the future digital economy is built around U.S.-Indian infrastructure, they wrote, it is more likely to remain open and secure. If it is built around China’s proprietary technology stack, they warned, the global order could become more fragmented.

Although the United States continues to hold a strong advantage in frontier AI models and advanced computing, China has shown significant capacity for technological innovation, the article said. To respond effectively, the authors argued, the United States needs the scale of talent and data that India can provide.

“India offers more than just a massive market. It provides population-scale datasets drawn from almost 1.5 billion people, making it a vital theater for testing AI in real-world environments — from rural agriculture to urban healthcare. Moreover, with an AI talent pool projected to exceed 1.25 million by 2027, India provides the intellectual heft and human capital required to sustain a high-tempo innovation cycle,” the article stated.

The authors cautioned, however, that India’s potential does not automatically translate into AI proficiency. While the country has a large talent pool, they said more work is needed to align skills with specific AI tasks.

They argued that bridging that gap should be treated as a U.S. strategic priority, saying American companies will need to integrate Indian talent into U.S.-led technology ecosystems to maintain an advantage over China.

The article outlined a four-part plan for turning current U.S.-India momentum in AI into a lasting strategic edge.

The first step, according to the authors, is linking India’s startup ecosystem with U.S. technology tools and capital to develop shared solutions for global challenges.

Second, the two countries should cooperate on building more resilient infrastructure and supply chains, including critical minerals, semiconductors, undersea cables, open telecommunications networks and data centers.

Third, the article said India and the United States should work together to create a smoother high-skill talent ecosystem, even as rising anti-immigrant sentiment in the United States and other countries complicates the political environment.

Finally, the authors said both countries need closer alignment on technology standards, intellectual property rights and cybersecurity policies. They argued that translating shared democratic values into common technology agendas will be necessary to reduce bilateral friction and speed cooperation. (Source: IANS)