India has a significant stake in Artificial Intelligence technology and the country is at a point where it can become a major AI innovation hub with more than 5,000 patents in AI being filed from India alone in the last one decade. These observations were made by Sandip Patel, Managing Director, IBM India and South Asia on the sidelines of the AI Day event that was hosted by IBM in Bengaluru. He pointed out that AI was not possible without information architecture and in the last few years in India, there was a lot of digital transformation, that has been powered and streamlined by AI. 

Patel further pointed out that as digitization in India continues to deepen, companies are eager to deploy AI and automation capabilities at scale to drive innovation and competitiveness. “As one of the fastest-growing economies, the world’s largest community of developers and a large start-up ecosystem, India is well poised to lead the AI revolution and establish itself as an AI innovation garage of the world,” remarked Patel. 

During the event, it was highlighted that over the past two years, AI has helped businesses ease the strain of workforce dislocation, supply chain challenges, IT incidents, customer service interruptions, etc. It was also pointed out that as per IBM’s Global AI Adoption Index 2022, 57 per cent of IT professionals in India report that their organization has actively deployed AI in their business, and over a quarter (27 per cent) indicate that their organization is exploring the use of AI. 

“When deployed appropriately, AI and Automation can transform government services, education, healthcare, and business interactions with customers in the upcoming techade. AI will scale and move from an operational benefit to an essential element in business growth and modernization,” said Viswanath Ramaswamy, Vice-President, Technology, IBM India and South Asia. 

It was highlighted that by applying AI technology, companies will establish more transparent, traceable, and decarbonized supply chains. AI and automation will help organizations to collect data, identify risk, validate documentation, and provide audit trails, even in high inflationary periods, while also managing their carbon, waste, energy, water consumption and material utility. It was also mentioned that in 2023, AI will continue its impact on the consumer care journey with more personalized and fully realized interactions. Conversational AI with expressions and emotions along with the voice of choice will bring in the personalization needed for making digital transformation possible. 

During this event, it was discussed that for India to achieve its $5 trillion GDP target by FY27, businesses must draw a significant correlation between AI maturity and its growth trajectory. As the country moves forward on its economic growth path, further enhancing data and AI capabilities at scale are critical. 

“AI is no longer a thing of the future- we are living in a world where enterprises are infusing intelligence in their core businesses and flourishing even in a disruptive market. These intelligent enterprises are realising their ambitions with never seen before revenue growth and we ourselves as consumers are experiencing the effects. To harness the power of AI and data, we need to measure the E-IQ (Enterprise Intelligence Quotient) of a business. E-IQ assesses an enterprise’s current intelligence infusion level and provides capabilities for stepping up its intelligence quotient,” pointed out Rahul Deshpande, Global Practice Delivery Head and Business Solutions Head for AI Solutions Practice, Wipro Limited.