Government to host AI-focused global summit in April

New Delhi : The Indian government on Wednesday said it will host an Artificial Intelligence (AI)-focused summit here on April 11-12 with the aim of providing a platform for a "global meeting of minds" to exchange ideas. The government will partner with industry and academia for the summit called "RAISE 2020 -- Responsible AI for Social Empowerment 2020".

Set to be inaugurated by Prime Minister Narendra Modi, the summit will aim to charter a course to use AI for social empowerment, inclusion and transformation in key areas like healthcare, agriculture, education and smart mobility, among other sectors.

Ahead of the summit, the Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology (MeitY) organised a consultation with industry representatives to bring in synergies within India's AI landscape.

"We are extremely delighted to announce the first of its kind two-day summit - 'Responsible AI for Social Empowerment 2020'. In our opinion, a data-rich environment like India has the potential to be the world's leading AI laboratory which can eventually transform lives globally," said Ajay Prakash Sawhney, Secretary, MeitY.

"AI technology is a powerful tool that can be used to create a positive impact in the Indian context, further becoming the AI destination for the world," Sawhney added. During the consultation session, the government also launched an AI-startup challenge "Pitchfest".

"The name "RAISE 2020" came into being because we want to leverage responsible AI practices for enabling the masses. Through this summit we will outline India's vision for utilising the power of AI to responsibly transform the social landscape for a better tomorrow," sad Abhishek Singh, President and CEO, National e-Governance Division (NeGD). "RAISE 2020 will facilitate an exchange of ideas to further create a mass awareness about the need to ethically develop and practice AI in the digital era," Singh said.