Confident India will be the leader in 4th Industrial Revolution, AI to play a massive role: PM Modi to Bill Gates

In a conversation with Bill Gates over India’s tech-led revolution, PM Modi told Bill Gates how India missed out on developing as a nation during the first and second industrial revolutions because of British colonisation. However, the country will make up for it in the fourth industrial revolution, PM Modi believes.

“Historically, during the first and second industrial revolutions, we lagged because we were a colony. Now, in the midst of a fourth industrial revolution, the digital element is at its core. I am confident that India will gain a lot in this," the PM said, while also adding that India has the potential to lead the 4th revolution.

PM Modi explained, how India has leveraged Al in various aspects of governance and society. He cited examples from the 2023 G20 Summit and initiatives like the NaMo App. PM Modi also noted how he has used AI in the G20 summit to translate his speeches and addresses across different languages. “A technology like ChatGPT should be used to constantly improve oneself,” he said.

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Gates commended how the Digital Public Infrastructure in India keeps on improving and keeps getting richer. “A lot of people know about the identity (Aadhar) and digital payment systems (UPI). The government has virtually also taken all payment programmes and digitised those. That alone saved a lot of money while creating access. In the second phase, India moved into different aspects, like helping farmers through easy access to advice and knowledge, health records, and tutoring kids,” he said. “Now, we are at a junction where the advancements in AI on top of all this will make the value even better.”

‘Aai’ and ‘AI’ intrinsic in India
On a lighter note, PM Modi told Bill Gates how AI is intrinsic to India, to the extent that even newborn children are all into AI. “Sometimes, I jokingly say that in our country, we call our mother ‘Aai’. Now I say that when a child is born, he says ‘Aai’ as well as AI as children have become so advanced."

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He added, “If we use Al as a magic tool, it will perhaps lead to a grave injustice. If Al is relied on out of laziness…then it is the wrong path. I should have a competition with ChatGPT and strive to go ahead of AI…”

Not all hunky-dory when it comes to AI
Both the leaders, during their conversation, also spoke on the pitfalls and shortcomings of AI. “Microsoft is celebrating 25 years in India, so while addressing the team here (in Hyderabad) I was challenging the team to increase the accuracy of our AI models. Copilot, for example, suggests things but the final decision we still have to review that.”

Gates then went on to ask “AI is a huge opportunity but there are a few challenges. How does India plan to approach that?” PM Modi, also recognised that all is not hunky-dory when it comes to AI. Deepfakes and misinformation, for example, are massive challenges that the world faces. The PM also proposed measures to mitigate its negative impact. “If such a good thing (AI) is given to someone without proper training, it is likely to be misused,” he said.

“We should start with clear watermarks on AI-generated content so that nobody is misguided. In a democratic country like India, anybody can use deepfake. It’s crucial to acknowledge that deepfake content is AI-generated. We need to think about some dos and don’ts,” the PM said,

Bill Gates also acknowledged the challenges associated with AI but expressed optimism about its potential for positive impact. He said “These are early days in AI…It will do things that you think are hard and then it will fail to do something which you think is easy. It seems like AI is a huge opportunity but there are a few challenges that come with it.”

Data and privacy.

Data and privacy are major issues and both the leaders, Gates and PM Modi recognise that. “In today’s AI world, data is so important. People have privacy concerns. How do we balance that?” asked Gates.

“Data security is a paramount concern,” said the Prime Minister. “And while India has a legal framework in place, public awareness is equally important,” the PM added.

He then gave the example, how in India Digilocker has been a game-changer. “Universities are now storing certificates and degrees in the cloud, which not only is a cost-effective measure but also an efficient one. Moreover, earlier there was a push for stringent compliance requirements. We advocated for simplification suggesting that data be uploaded to the cloud with shared IDs, and enable us to access necessary information directly.”

The PM also revealed that while technology was an enabler for services previously, now it is a great way to help with the ease of living for Indian citizens.