Launch of Three AI Centres of Excellence to Propel Innovation

Syllabus: GS3/ Economy and Infrastructure

Context

• The Central government announced the setting up of three centers of excellence (CoE) in artificial intelligence (AI) in healthcare, agriculture and sustainable cities.

About

• The Union Budget of 2023-24 had proposed the setting up of AI-CoEs with a financial outlay of ₹990 crore over the period of 2023-24 to 2027-28. 
  • The CoE in healthcare will be led by the All India Institute of Medical Sciences (AIIMS) and Indian Institute of Technology (IIT) in Delhi.
  • The CoE in agriculture will be led by IIT in Ropar, Punjab.
  • The CoE in sustainable cities will be led by IIT IIT Kanpur

What is a Centre of Excellence (CoE)?

• A Centre of Excellence (CoE) is a specialized hub that brings together research, innovation, and industry expertise to tackle important challenges in a specific field. 
• The AI-CoEs are going to be solution providers and would create a new generation of employment providers and wealth creators. 
• In the case of these new AI CoEs, the focus will be on:
  • Enabling cutting-edge AI applications tailored to healthcare, agriculture, and urban sustainability. 
  • Promoting knowledge exchange among academia, industry, and startups. 
  • Training professionals and students to develop the skills required to become future AI leaders.

Impact on India’s Startup Ecosystem 

• Access to Research and Technology: Startups will benefit from advanced AI research and access to experimental labs, data, and technical platforms provided by the CoEs. 
• Collaboration Opportunities: Startups will benefit from partnerships with educational institutions and industry experts, fostering knowledge exchange and collaborative growth.

SIgnificance

• Healthcare: Predictive analytics and AI-based diagnostics will transform patient care and public health management. 
• Agriculture: AI-powered tools will help optimize crop yields, reduce wastage, and improve supply chain efficiency. 
• Sustainable Cities: The CoEs will drive smart transportation solutions, waste management systems, and energy-efficient urban infrastructure, promoting green urbanization across the nation

Way Ahead

• These institutions would give further impetus to the start-up ecosystem in the country, help create a new generation of job and wealth creators and establish new paradigms of global public good.
• The CoEs would promote multidisciplinary research with the right kind of collaboration among like-minded resources and this could result in achieving optimum results.

Source: TH