India AI Impact Summit 2026

ai-for-all-catalysing-jobs-growth-and-opportunity

8 min read

TRACK:Economic Growth and Social Good
SPEAKERS
  • Aastha Grover, Prosus
  • Naspers Group
  • Ashok Gulati, ICRIER, Comptroller and Auditor General of India, RBI, NABARD and NCDEX
  • Chandrashekhar Rentala, Centre for the Digital Future, GOI (IT & Telecom) and NASSCOM
  • David Tudor, Prosus
  • Naspers Group
  • Euro Beinat, Prosus
  • Naspers Group
  • Manit Jain, The Heritage School and FICCI Arise
  • Nicola McGowan, Prosus
  • Naspers Group
  • Sehraj Singh, Prosus
  • Naspers Group
  • Tejpreet Singh Chopra, Bharat Light & Power (BLP) and General Electric India
  • Vikas Agnihotri, Google India, Softbank and Religare Private Wealth
SESSION OVERVIEW

The session will explore how India's DPI-led approach can enable inclusive AI adoption, unlock job creation, accelerate economic growth, and foster cross-sector collaboration. By bridging policy intent with on-ground execution, the dialogue aims to identify key enablers—policy frameworks, industry participation, and startup innovation—required to scale AI responsibly and equitably across sectors.

VIDEO RECORDING

AI for All: Catalysing Jobs, Growth, and Opportunity

Abstract

The panel explored how India’s policy‑driven, “Digital Public Infrastructure” (DPI) framework can harness AI to generate inclusive employment, accelerate economic growth, and foster cross‑sector collaboration. Participants highlighted the twin pressures of climate‑driven transformation and rapid AI diffusion, the risk of “jobless growth,” and the need for coordinated policy, social‑protection, and reskilling mechanisms. Sector‑specific insights were offered for agriculture, energy, manufacturing, education, healthcare, and finance, complemented by concrete announcements (e.g., OpenAI Academy, a new ICRIER‑OpenAI report, a forthcoming sovereign LLM strategy). The session concluded with a call for a collective, multi‑stakeholder effort to create “clean” labor markets and AI governance that benefits all Indians.

Detailed Summary

Sabina (Just Jobs Network) opened with a narrative of “two Indias.”

  • Macro‑level picture: India enjoys 3.1 % overall unemployment (full‑employment benchmark < 5 %). Yet, this masks a youth unemployment rate three times higher—approximately 370 million people aged 15‑29, outnumbering the total population of any industrialised nation.
  • “Job‑less growth” – Economic expansion is not translating into proportional job creation; many new jobs are high‑skill, low‑quantity, leaving large swathes of the workforce without viable employment.
  • Structural shortcomings:
    • Weak social‑protection mechanisms and wealth concentration.
    • An education‑skill system where only 4.1 % of the labour force reports having formal skills.
    • A nascent National Education Policy with a modest vocational component, but inadequate in scale and relevance.

Sabina warned that AI’s rapid pace is outstripping the capacity of India’s institutions and policies to adapt, risking the exclusion of the majority from AI‑driven gains.

2. Global Perspective – Multilateral Governance & Social Protection

Dr. Claire Melamed (UN Foundation) responded to Sabina’s concerns:

  • Multilateral approach: AI‑induced disruption demands coordinated international frameworks, especially around wealth redistribution and migration.
  • Redistribution challenge: Traditional nation‑centric taxation struggles when AI “winners” and “losers” reside in different jurisdictions. New supranational mechanisms would be required, though political obstacles are formidable.
  • Migration as a safety valve: Economic and climate‑driven migration will intensify; policy must anticipate cross‑border labour flows while balancing domestic socio‑political concerns.

3. The Indian Policy Landscape – Government, Data, and Skills

Pragya (OpenAI) outlined OpenAI’s engagement with Indian policy‑makers:

  • Research partnership: OpenAI collaborated with ICRIER on a survey of 650 Indian firms, revealing:
    • Companies are slowing hiring yet growing overall job numbers due to AI‑driven productivity gains.
    • AI enhances efficiency across functions (engineering, finance, HR, legal).
  • OpenAI Academy & Certifications:
    • Free AI education for teachers and students.
    • Certification pathways that boost employability.
  • Blueprint for reskilling: Emphasised that upskilling can be rapid when AI tools are used for learning, and that AI should be a lever for inclusive growth rather than a threat.

4. Entrepreneurial View – Emerging AI‑Enabled Job Categories

Nirmith (Entrepreneur, Blue Machines AI) highlighted new job archetypes:

  • Forward‑Deployment Engineering (FDE): Specialists who translate sector‑specific knowledge (e.g., trucking) into AI solutions.
  • Evaluation (Evals) & Multilingual AI Development: India’s diverse linguistic landscape creates demand for localized AI models and data‑set creation.
  • Creative augmentation: AI automates routine tasks, freeing humans for creative, nuanced work (e.g., ad‑directing).

Nirmith stressed the mantra: “You won’t lose a job to AI; you’ll lose a job to someone who uses AI.”

5. Sector‑Specific Deep Dives

5.1 Agriculture & Climate Resilience

  • Sabina noted that climate‑action and AI intersect in genome mapping & gene editing for nutrient‑rich crops (e.g., zinc‑fortified wheat and rice).
  • Impact estimate: A 1 °C temperature rise could wipe out 5 % of wheat output, underscoring AI’s role in climate‑resilient breeding and precision farming.

5.2 Education – Re‑architecting the Learning Ecosystem

Manit Jain (The Heritage School & FICCI Arise) offered a stark reality check:

  • Scale: 96 % universal school access (14 Lakh schools, 24 crore students, 1 crore teachers) – the world’s largest education system.

  • Quality vs. relevance gap:

    • Graduates lack basic employability skills.
    • AI amplifies the need for lifelong, personalised learning.

  • Four‑pillar reform blueprint:

    1. Lifelong & personalised learning – AI‑driven tutoring that meets each child where they are.
    2. Teacher role shift – from content delivery to child‑centric mentorship; AI reduces administrative load.
    3. Parental literacy – Empower parents to navigate AI‑augmented education.
    4. Unified digital platform – A single ecosystem for teachers, students, governments, and ed‑tech firms, providing AI‑tutors, coaching, and real‑time analytics.

  • Policy recommendation: Guarantee a device + internet connectivity as a basic right, and catalyse ed‑tech startups to move beyond subject delivery into socio‑emotional, financial, and physical literacy.

5.3 Healthcare – Scaling Access & Quality

BCG Partner (Shity Jai) mapped AI’s potential across the health system:

  • Current paradox: India’s high‑quality care (institutional deliveries ↑ from 39 % to > 90 %; life expectancy > 72 years) coexists with massive access gaps (e.g., 1 doctor per 500 people in Kerala vs. 1 per 5 000 in Nagaland).

  • Four AI‑enabled opportunity pillars:

    1. Access at scale – Mobile cough‑analysis tools for TB screening.
    2. Quality boost – Real‑time voice‑scribe and decision‑support for frontline health workers, reducing subjectivity.
    3. Cost reduction – Streamlined workflows and smarter resource allocation.
    4. Job creation – Need for data engineers, AI‑trained clinicians, and implementation specialists.

  • Ethical guardrails were emphasised: data privacy, safety, and equitable deployment.

5.4 Manufacturing – AI for MSMEs

TP (Manufacturing SME advocate) presented a “once‑in‑a‑lifetime” opportunity:

  • Economic weight: 230 million workers, 30 % of GDP, 50 % of exports stem from MSMEs.
  • Data utilisation gap: Only 1–1.5 % of factory data is currently leveraged.
  • Vision: Deploy cloud‑scale AI on the shop‑floor at affordable prices, turning raw sensor data into actionable insights, thereby transforming Indian manufacturing.

5.5 Finance – Inclusion, Productivity, and Risk Management

Vikas Agnihotri (Google India, Softbank, Religare) highlighted systemic bottlenecks and AI‑driven remedies:

  • Credit inclusion gap: ₹3 lakh crore of unmet MSME credit demand; AI can improve credit scoring using alternative data.

  • Productivity pressures: OPEX ↑ 11 %; IT costs ↑ 16.8 % CAGR; AI can automate routine processes, slashing costs.

  • Risk management: AI can enhance delinquency prediction, collections, and asset‑quality monitoring, reducing cyclical stress.

  • Deposit & insurance shortfalls: Household savings ratio fell from 67 % to ~ 40 %; AI‑enabled financial literacy and underwriting could broaden coverage.

  • Strategic recommendation: Re‑engineer BFSI models (akin to a fuel‑efficiency overhaul for a car) and coordinate regulators, fintechs, and technology providers for a unified AI strategy.

6. Synthesis – Core Themes & Recommendations

Vipin (Moderator) & BCG team distilled four high‑level points:

  1. AI as a force multiplier – Not a job‑killer; it expands productivity, access, and quality across sectors.
  2. National AI sovereignty – Develop Indian‑owned LLMs and modular stacks to limit dependence on external providers.
  3. Coherent AI strategy – Move beyond pilots; scale solutions with clear governance, budgeting, and impact metrics.
  4. Collective responsibility – Government, industry, academia, and civil society must co‑design the transition; no single entity can solve it alone.

7. Closing Remarks – Vision from Naspers

Yuro (Process Naspers Group) summarized why India is the focal point for global AI investment:

  • Scale of data & talent – Massive user base and a deep pool of engineers.
  • Infrastructure advantage – Robust digital ID, payments, and data‑interoperability frameworks.
  • Necessity‑driven innovation – AI can be an equaliser if deployed inclusively; otherwise it widens gaps.

He highlighted Naspers’ investment track record (PayU, Swiggy, etc.) and pledged continued partnership with India’s Ministry of Electronics & IT, BCG, and the session’s co‑chairs to build “essential AI” that benefits everyone.

The session concluded with a brief token of appreciation from the organizers and a reminder that the next session would begin shortly.

Key Takeaways

  • Two‑India reality: Strong macro‑growth coexists with youth‑centric unemployment and “job‑less growth,” demanding targeted reskilling and social‑protection reforms.
  • AI‑driven productivity is already boosting efficiency in engineering, finance, healthcare, and manufacturing; the challenge is scaling these gains equitably.
  • OpenAI Academy & certifications provide free, scalable AI education to teachers and students, forming a core pillar of India’s upskilling strategy.
  • Sector‑specific AI routes:
    • Agriculture: Gene‑editing & precision farming to combat climate‑induced yield loss.
    • Education: Unified AI‑enabled platform for personalised learning, teacher coaching, and parental literacy.
    • Healthcare: Mobile diagnostics, AI‑assisted decision support, and data‑standardisation to extend quality care.
    • Manufacturing: Deploy AI on MSME shop‑floors to unlock the untapped 98 % of idle factory data.
    • Finance: AI‑enhanced credit scoring, risk monitoring, and financial‑inclusion tools to close the ₹3 lakh crore credit gap.
  • Redistribution & migration must be addressed at a global multilateral level, as AI‑driven wealth creation spans borders and traditional tax regimes struggle to capture it.
  • Indian AI sovereignty is a strategic priority: develop home‑grown LLMs and modular stacks to avoid reliance on any single foreign ecosystem.
  • Policy recommendation: Adopt a coherent national AI strategy that links AI adoption to social‑protection, lifelong learning, and inclusive growth, moving beyond isolated pilots to systemic implementation.
  • Collective effort needed – Government, industry, academia, startups, and civil society must coordinate; no single stakeholder can deliver the transition alone.
  • Optimistic outlook: With its massive data, talent, and infrastructure, India is uniquely positioned to lead the next wave of AI‑enabled inclusive growth, provided it acts swiftly and collaboratively.

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