Baramati (Maharashtra), December 28 (ANI): Adani Group Chairman Gautam Adani on Sunday made a strong case for India developing its own sovereign artificial intelligence (AI) capabilities, warning that unchecked dependence on foreign technologies could pose serious economic and strategic risks for the country. He said artificial intelligence has emerged as the defining force of the fourth industrial revolution and must be built, governed and aligned with India’s national interest.
Addressing students, researchers and policymakers after inaugurating the Sharadchandra Pawar Centre of Excellence in Artificial Intelligence at Vidya Pratishthan in Baramati, Pune district, Adani said growth without sovereignty creates dependence, while progress without control creates risk.
“While job creation is vital, a nation of 1.4 billion people cannot afford to place its jobs, data, culture, and collective intelligence at the mercy of foreign algorithms and foreign balance sheets,” he said, stressing the need for India-made AI models.
The AI centre, funded by the Adani Group, has been established under Vidya Pratishthan, the educational institution governed by the Pawar family. Maharashtra Deputy Chief Minister Ajit Pawar and NCP-SCP chief Sharad Pawar were present at the inauguration. The Adani Group also signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with Vidya Pratishthan to deepen collaboration in AI research, engineering and execution.
Setting the tone for his address, Adani reflected on the transformative role of technology across history. “While the seeds of yesterday were sown in the earth, the seeds of tomorrow will be sown in the algorithm,” he said, noting that human progress has never been linear but has advanced in powerful leaps driven by technological revolutions.
Tracing the journey from steam and mechanisation to electrification, digital computing and now artificial intelligence, he said every technological transition brings both extraordinary opportunity and profound anxiety. “Fear of displacement, fear of irrelevance, fear of giving up control to systems we do not yet fully understand — these fears are deeply human and must be addressed responsibly,” he said.
Citing historical evidence, Adani argued that technology has consistently expanded employment rather than destroyed it. He noted that the First Industrial Revolution increased employment in Britain more than fivefold, the Second created mass manufacturing, logistics and management jobs, and the Digital Revolution fuelled software, services, platforms and entrepreneurship that now employ hundreds of millions globally.
Turning to India’s own experience, Adani said the mobile and digital revolution had unleashed unprecedented economic energy at the grassroots. “When smartphones and low-cost data reached ordinary Bharatiyas, it released an enormous surge of economic energy,” he said, adding that between 1991 and 2024, India added over 230 million non-farm jobs, most of them after the expansion of digital infrastructure.
“These opportunities did not arise from policy alone or capital alone. They emerged when capability reached the common citizen,” he said, expressing confidence that artificial intelligence would represent the next and far more powerful leap. “If mobile gave Bharat greater access, AI will give Bharat greater capability.”
Painting a picture of an AI-enabled future, Adani said artificial intelligence would embed capability, decision-making and productivity across every sector — from farmers using AI to optimise crops and manage risk in real time to homemakers in tier-III towns building global microbrands. However, he cautioned that AI is a “double-edged sword” and must be treated as a strategic national capability.
Adani said the Sharadchandra Pawar Centre of Excellence in AI arrives at a moment of immense national significance as India seeks to position itself at the forefront of the global AI revolution. “The AI future is not something that will automatically arrive in Bharat. It is something our nation must build,” he said.
He also outlined the Adani Group’s investments in AI-related infrastructure, including data centres and green energy, describing them as “factories of intelligence” essential for sovereignty, productivity and national security.
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