As the US and China drive a new era of AI competition, and the EU asserts leadership on AI regulation, India has articulated its ambition to lead in technology and shape global AI governance. With its democratic legitimacy and digital capacity, India is positioned to represent the Global South in AI forums. However, without a comprehensive, politically grounded national strategy, it risks falling behind in technological capability and managing the attendant strategic and social transformations.
The IndiaAI Mission, approved last year with a budget of over Rs 10,000 crore, is a welcome step. But it is a mission without a mandate. Housed as a division of a Section 8 company under the Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology, it is led by a bureaucrat. Operating without a Cabinet-endorsed national strategy, it lacks both the political heft to drive whole-of-government coordination or signal the long-term political commitment required to align public and private action. The US, China, the UK and the EU anchor their AI efforts in formal, Cabinet-endorsed national strategies with clear roadmaps and timelines.
This governance gap is critical because India faces structural deficits that impede its AI ecosystem, which cannot be overcome through incremental approaches. The Indian R&D base remains relatively shallow. Our universities are underrepresented in global AI rankings; the pipeline of AI-specialised PhDs is limited; collaboration between academia and industry is weak. India continues to lose top-tier AI talent to global hubs.
In the private sector, India’s IT industry remains oriented toward services. Research investments are modest relative to international companies, and to the extent that the Indian IT industry has engaged with AI, it has been largely in deployment — downstream of frontier innovation. India lacks AI-first national champions and the deep-tech industrial ecosystem seen in global leaders. Venture capital majors are frank: They see India as a consumer market, not a deep-tech innovator. Funding remains skewed towards consumer tech, not foundational research. Bridging these deficits will require a coordinated transformation, guided by a national strategy, anchored in political consensus and designed to provide long-term policy stability. That consensus is what India’s current approach lacks. Parliament’s role goes beyond regulation; it is the primary forum for signalling bipartisan political consensus .Yet, Parliament has remained extraneous to shaping national AI governance. Less than 1 per cent of questions are on AI and there is no dedicated institutional mechanism for oversight. In other leading democracies, legislative processes have built bipartisan support for AI strategies, ensured transparency, and aligned governance with public values. Without parliamentary anchoring, India’s AI governance risks remaining fragmented and vulnerable to administrative shifts.
The consequences of this democratic deficit are evident. Important debates around strategic autonomy, use of public data, energy demands and national security implications have received short shrift in the largely technocratic policy discussions. This absence also undermines India’s international credibility. While India’s leadership of the Global Partnership on AI signals global ambition, other democracies will look at whether its domestic governance aligns with its aspirations abroad.
The path forward is clear. India needs a Cabinet-endorsed National AI Strategy — presented to Parliament — that sets out a vision, an actionable roadmap, and mechanisms for democratic accountability. This strategy must establish an empowered coordinating authority with a whole-of-government mandate; align R&D, industrial policy, and security strategy, and create frameworks for public engagement and parliamentary oversight. AI is not just another technology. It is a general-purpose transformation that will reshape national security, economic structures and the social contract itself. Managing that transformation requires policy stability and legitimacy — built through broad-based national deliberation.
India’s strengths are undeniable: A young population, a competitive digital economy, and the world’s largest democracy. These assets position India to chart an AI trajectory that combines innovation with inclusion. But that future will not emerge by default.
The window for action is closing. As global AI governance frameworks take shape and capabilities advance rapidly, India must move beyond piecemeal initiatives toward a comprehensive strategy. AI governance must be treated as a national strategic priority — grounded in democratic consensus — if India is to shape an AI future aligned with its national interests and global leadership aspirations.
Gupta is executive director of Future of India Foundation. This article draws from the Foundation’s report, ‘Governing AI in India: Why Strategy Must Precede Mission’
