Microsoft to extend its educational AI for India, Shiksha CoPilot, to over 100 schools

Microsoft CEO Satya Nadella has highlighted the company’s significant investment in India’s AI talent pool, particularly through its AI offering, Microsoft Copilot. Nadella, currently visiting India, emphasized the impact of tools like Shiksha Copilot, which aim to streamline educational processes and enhance student engagement. Shiksha Copilot, part of Project VeLLM by Microsoft Research India, leverages generative AI to assist teachers, farmers, and small business owners.

It was awesome seeing firsthand today this example of how Indian educators are applying this next generation of AI to give time back to teachers and deliver more engaging lesson plans for students. https://t.co/KAHPvgprAt

— Satya Nadella (@satyanadella) February 8, 2024

Built on the Microsoft Azure OpenAI Service, Shiksha Copilot integrates with school curriculums and learning objectives, aiming to alleviate the burden on teachers and enrich learning experiences for students. Nadella expressed enthusiasm for the potential of AI to revolutionize education in India, noting that the tool significantly reduces the time required for teachers to prepare lesson plans. Sikshana, an organization involved in the initiative, reported a drastic reduction in preparation time from over an hour to just 5 to 15 minutes, with minimal modifications needed by teachers. This initiative aligns with Microsoft’s broader commitment to upskilling 2 million individuals in India to bolster the country’s AI talent pool, as announced by Nadella earlier in the week. Project VeLLM seeks to bridge the digital divide by leveraging Large Language Models (LLMs) to overcome barriers related to language, income, digital literacy, and information access. During his visit, Nadella also met with Indian developers, reaffirming Microsoft’s dedication to empowering the country’s burgeoning developer community. He highlighted India’s potential as a hub for AI-based product development, citing projections that India will surpass the US to become the largest developer community on GitHub by 2027. Currently, India ranks second among the top 10 global communities contributing to generative AI projects on GitHub. (With inputs from agencies)