Industry body representing Microsoft, AWS seeks copyright exemption to train AI in India
It has also recommended the removal of restrictions to cross border data transfers while expanding access to “non-sensitive high-value government datasets”.
The Business Software Alliance (BSA), a global trade group whose members include enterprise giants such as Microsoft, IBM, AWS, Adobe, Salesforce, and SAP, among others, has called on the Indian government to enable an exception for “text and data mining” in India’s copyright law.
It has also recommended the removal of restrictions to cross-border data transfers while expanding access to “non-sensitive high-value government datasets”. Additionally, the BSA has asked the government to ensure that the Digital Personal Data Protection (DPDP) Act, 2023, supports processing of personal data for AI training.
For context, publicly available personal data does not fall within the scope of India’s data protection law. However, industry stakeholders have previously argued that ambiguities in the current language of the law could lead to compliance risks, and have further urged the government to revise sections of the law to allow unconditional processing of publicly available personal data for training or fine-tuning AI models.
Earlier this year, the IT Ministry issued draft rules to operationalise the DPDP Act but they are yet to be officially notified.
Meanwhile, the BSA has also suggested the development of an open industry standard for reliable content authentication and provenance mechanisms. The industry body’s policy recommendations are part of its report titled ‘enterprise AI adoption agenda for India’ that was released during an AI pre-summit forum held in New Delhi on Thursday, November 6.
The forum is one of 800 such events being held in the buildup to the India AI Impact Summit that is scheduled to be held in February 2026. It is set to be the first large-scale AI summit to be hosted in the global South, after previous editions were held in Bletchley Park, Seoul, and Paris.
‘White collar jobs in limited proportion in India’
In his address at the BSA AI pre-summit forum, S.Krishnan, Secretary, Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology (MeitY), suggested that the impact of AI on jobs might be limited in India as it has a smaller share of white collar jobs compared to other countries.
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“Many countries of the world have a lot more people who are engaged in office-oriented work than we have in India. Many of those are going to be replaced. White collar jobs in India are still a limited proportion of the total number of jobs that we have. The headroom for advancing productivity, whether it is in intellectual work or any work in any kind of enterprise, is also substantially high in India,” he said.
“We assume that today the kind of job I’m doing, the kind of service I’m providing, I might get replaced and therefore I fear this. But by using that same AI tool, you might be doing something significantly more with much higher productivity,” he added.
Krishnan’s remarks come amid a recent outbreak of AI-fueled layoffs, with tech giants such as Amazon and IBM announcing that they will be cutting hundreds of thousands of corporate jobs. To be sure, India’s Economic Survey 2024-25 has said that “although the impact of AI on labour will be felt across the world, the problem is magnified for India, given its size and its relatively low per capita income.” It has also called for the creation of “robust institutions,” which could help transition workers to medium- and high-skilled jobs, where AI can augment their efforts rather than replace them.
Speaking at the event on Thursday, Abhishek Singh, Additional Secretary, MeitY, said that the Indian government is working with partners such as NASSCOM to ensure that AI agents and coding tools can be used to improve the output of human engineers rather than replace them. The proliferation of AI coding tools could replace human coders and some jobs in the sector might be impacted, he said.
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“When AI tools become more efficient, we also run the risk of some people being adversely impacted. Therein, the whole issue comes in of how do we give them the necessary skills and impart abilities to take up opportunities that come up in agentic AI or physical AI? That requires considerate effort in partnership with industry,” the IT Ministry official added.
Other recommendations by BSA
The industry body has called for AI innovation hubs to be set up in partnership with global enterprise companies “to deepen talent pipelines and accelerate adoption of AI-enabled tools and capabilities.”
It also advocated “expanding IndiaAI FutureSkills by incorporating sector-specific training, scaling nationwide AI training academies, such as those at the Indian Institutes of Technology (IITs) and National Institutes of Technology (NITs) and building a national AI curriculum in partnership with industry and government.”
“BSA’s recommendations to accelerate AI adoption in India are based on real-world feedback from industry leaders about the opportunities for India, as well as the challenges for industry to address in partnership with the government,” said BSA CEO Victoria Espinel.
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Last month, a NITI Aayog report estimated that accelerated adoption of AI across industries could contribute $500-600 billion USD to India’s GDP by 2035, while increasing productivity and efficiency in the workforce.
Karan Mahadik is a Tech Correspondent for The Indian Express based in Delhi-NCR, specializing in the intersection of technology and public policy. With a focus on how digital infrastructure shapes governance and society, he is a key voice in the publication's coverage of the rapidly evolving tech regulation landscape.
Experience & Career
Karan brings a robust background in digital journalism to his role at The Indian Express. Before joining the organization, he honed his skills at MediaNama, a premier source for tech policy news in India, and The Quint. This trajectory has equipped him with a deep understanding of both the business of technology and the regulatory frameworks that govern it.
Expertise & Focus Areas
Karan’s reporting moves beyond product cycles to investigate the broader implications of technology. His work is defined by:
Tech Policy & Regulation: In-depth coverage of legal frameworks, government directives (such as SIM-binding mandates), and internet governance.
Artificial Intelligence: He authors The Smart Prompt, a weekly newsletter dedicated to demystifying AI developments and their impact on industries and individuals.
Privacy & Security: Reporting on digital rights, data protection (DPDP rules), and platform accountability.
Complex Analysis: Known for his ability to translate dense policy documents and technical shifts into clear, accessible narratives for a general audience.
Authoritativeness & Trust
Karan is recognized for his rigorous approach to sourcing and his commitment to digital privacy, evidenced by his accessibility via secure channels like Signal. His work is frequently cited for its detailed examination of regulatory overreach and corporate accountability. By anchoring his reporting in verified data and expert commentary, he provides readers with a reliable compass for navigating the "wild west" of modern technology.
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