India well-positioned to capture significant share of global AI software, services market

Mumbai, Oct 7 (IANS) With its differentiated approach across the AI stack, India is well-positioned to capture a significant share of the global AI software and services market, a report said on Tuesday.

"By 2028, this market opportunity is projected at $100-120 billion in revenues, equivalent to 50 per cent of India’s current IT services market," Boston Consulting Group (BCG) said in its latest report at the opening day of the Global Fintech Fest (GFF) in Mumbai.

However, India faces the “2–20 conundrum” as it is generating nearly 20 per cent of the world’s data but holding just 2 per cent of global data centre capacity.

To address this gap, India should aspire for at least an 8 per cent share (around 17 GW) of global capacity by 2030, requiring large-scale real estate and sustainable energy, the report noted.

India must continue to grow and expand AIKosh, the national datasets platform, to serve the unique model-build needs of India and other emerging economies, it added.

Additionally, the nation should prioritise domain-specific, population-scale AI models in areas such as healthcare, agriculture, education, and financial inclusion.

“India is at a defining moment. On one hand, Indian Fintechs have demonstrated 35 per cent growth in the last 2 years and are on track to achieve $190 bn by 2030. On the other hand, AI is rewriting the rules of competitiveness globally and has reignited innovation as a top CXO priority for Indian fintechs," said Yashraj Erande, Global Head of Fintech and India Head of Financial Institutions at BCG.

"The good news for India is that it is uniquely positioned on three fronts -- as the world’s largest AI consumer market, a global AI use-case playground, and a leading execution hub exporting technology solutions worldwide," he added.

India has both scale and execution muscle, and the government has stepped up decisively with the 'India AI Mission'.

Meanwhile, the world is undergoing an Artificial Intelligence supercycle, with more than $1.3 trillion invested worldwide over the past five years -- four times the global fintech funding.

AI adoption has been unprecedented, with mainstream GenAI tools achieving around 40 per cent penetration within two years among working-age populations, a milestone that the internet took five years to reach.

"AI’s impact will not be limited to large institutions; it has the potential to create a transformational impact on the lives of every human. It can be an enabler for 'Convenience in Daily Life' and 'Convenience in Business Operations, ’" the report said.

--IANS

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