78 pc leaders urge for accelerating responsible AI ecosystem

Mumbai: About 78 per cent of industry leaders urge for accelerating a responsible Artificial Intelligence (AI) ecosystem in India to help improve decision-making and governance, according to a report.

The report by management consultancy Primus Partners presents a detailed study of the responsible and ethical AI ecosystem in India from the industry perspective and advocates ethical, transparent, and accountable AI practices while also outlining possible enforcement mechanisms for AI regulations in India.

If governed responsibly, AI has the potential to contribute up to 10 per cent to India’s GDP by 2025, revealed the report.

For about 76 per cent of industry leaders, the top concerns in AI deployment include challenges of data quality and availability (which include data scarcity, biases in datasets, and the complexities of data preparation and cleaning).

The report also emphasises that 61 per cent of the industry prioritises privacy and security, including threats posed by deep fakes, as a crucial principle-based element in safe AI deployment.

It comes at a crucial time as India positions itself at the forefront of global AI innovation while addressing the ethical challenges posed by rapid technological advancement.

“India’s current AI landscape reflects a segment full of opportunities. As we journey towards becoming a trillion-dollar digital economy, we must adopt a balanced approach to AI governance. This involves leveraging AI for its economic benefits while ensuring robust regulatory frameworks that can prevent or curb risks such as deepfakes by promoting ethical standards,” said Devroop Dhar, Co-Founder and Managing Director, Primus Partners.

“As AI’s influence is driving significant advancements and efficiencies across diverse industries worldwide, responsible use of AI should be a shared global priority,” he added.

Further, the report showed that 53 per cent of respondents believe that AI systems should be designed to be transparent and explainable to ensure trust and accountability, while 78 per cent emphasise the need for ongoing skill development and training to keep pace with AI advancements.

Many industry leaders (51 per cent) also prefer a hybrid regulatory approach combining traditional frameworks with adaptive guidelines, while some (47.3 per cent) believe that over-regulation and over-compliance if put in place, can become a deterrent to AI’s growth.

Others (89 per cent) believe that specific regulations are essential to ensure ethical practices, accountability, and transparency in AI development and deployment

The report also calls for a collaborative approach between the government and the private sector to develop standards and practices that ensure AI benefits all segments of society.