RAISE 2020: PM Modi to inaugurate global virtual summit on responsible AI

Giving another push to his dream project of ‘Digital India’, Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Monday will inaugurate the Summit RAISE 2020- ‘Responsible AI for Social Empowerment 2020. The first-of-its-kind global virtual summit on Artificial Intelligence (AI) is being organized by the Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology and NITI Aayog from 5th to 9th of October.

RAISE-2020 will be a global meeting of minds to exchange ideas and chart a course for using AI for social transformation, inclusion and empowerment in areas like healthcare, agriculture, education and smart mobility, among other sectors.

The aim of the summit is to kick-start discussion on the creation of robust AI-powered public infrastructure that benefits all, not just in India but across the world.

India, one of the founding members of the global partnership on artificial intelligence, aims to implement AI-based solutions not just domestically but in countries around the world so that these lead to widespread social empowerment and prosperity.

Over the course of the five-day summit, several leading AI experts from across the world will deliberate over topics of vital importance like strategies for using AI for social benefit, the importance of creating reliable AI infrastructure and the transformative effect of AI in empowering communities.

Speaking about RAISE-2020 Amitabh Kant, CEO, NITI Aayog said, “We firmly believe that AI can help transform lives. India is developing AI-based solutions for social empowerment across spheres like healthcare, education, finance, agriculture and governance. On the strength of its data and innovation prowess, India can become the AI laboratory of the world, delivering intuitive solutions to a wide range of societal issues.”

So far, more than 38,700 stakeholders from academia, the research industry and government representatives from 125 countries have registered to participate in RAISE 2020.

Ajay Prakash Sawhney, Secretary, Ministry of Electronics and IT said, “India has the talent and the institutional capacity to build an AI-ready workforce that innovates and delivers solutions to solve societal issues. We are taking steps to promote the development and integration of AI into important spheres of life, in order to improve the ease of living and overall quality of life. RAISE 2020 will serve as a starting point for India to become a data-driven society that leverages AI for social good.”

An AI innovation contest titled Atma Nirbhar Bharat: AI Challenge and Pitch Fest was organized in the run-up to RAISE 2020. The contest, which started on September 14 and ended on September 25, invited solutions to issues in the areas like healthcare, education, agriculture, smart mobility and natural language processing. Fifteen top AI solutions were selected by a jury and will be awarded INR 20 lakh each on October 9.

From agriculture to fin-tech and healthcare to infrastructure, India is at the cusp of rapid development in artificial intelligence. India can become the AI laboratory of the world and contribute to inclusive development and growth through empowerment.