Speech

As prepared for delivery

Prime Minister Modi—Namaste! My congratulations to you, to Minister Vaishnaw, and to all the organizers for bringing us together at this fantastic Summit!

AI has arrived; it is here. Investment is surging into data centers, power plants, and neural networks. It is like when the world was building the railways: the old ways of doing things will be changed forever, and this time it will be much faster.

AI will bring opportunity and challenge—and it is for us to maximize the benefits.

First, the opportunities. We know that AI will lift productivity—but by how much, and how will it impact the labor market? We at the IMF estimate it has the potential to lift global annual GDP growth by up to 0.8 percentage points. This is a vast upside potential.

On a human level, we can expect countless small wins. For the woman in Nagaland far from the nearest oncologist, one photo of the tumor on her leg and her smartphone will give her a diagnosis. For the farmer in arid Kutch, AI will advise which crop to plant and when. It fires up the imagination.

Second, the challenges—AI will massively transform the world of work.

New research by IMF staff tells a fascinating story. People with the right talents will be in hot demand for jobs that will be enhanced by new skills. These people will earn more. What will they do? They will spend more—on restaurants, on travel, you name it. With what result? More lower-skilled jobs, especially in services.  In the US, for example, we have clearly seen that where the adoption of new skills is higher, employment rises by more.

But there will also be dislocation linked to the sheer pace of change—many jobs in the middle that AI will not enhance but rather replace.

I worry about a hollowing out of the middle, for young call-center workers that may be replaced by bots, for IT graduates potentially replaced by algorithms. We must prepare, and the best preparation is to be open-eyed about the risks of AI and invest in people.

Here today, in this ancient yet dynamic land—a country bursting with optimism and creative energy—I want to salute an AI strategy centered on the human dimension, focused on delivering real wins for real people, never forgetting the least fortunate amongst us. How befitting for the world’s largest democracy!

Where others pursue large language models with maximum complexity, you prioritize practicality, accessibility, and reach. Where others impose large user fees, you favor an open-source approach. This is the spirit that sets India apart.

Given the huge challenges of global AI diffusion, I find it especially admirable that India knows the good it can do for others—with its digital interfaces and human ingenuity, it is on the forefront of making things happen, offering a unique focus on democratizing AI. And India has extensive experience in creating practical solutions for rural and urban communities, which can benefit low-income and developing countries across the world.

Let me end with a concrete example. When millions across the world were suffering from HIV/AIDS, unable to afford the life-saving drugs they so desperately needed, India’s pharmaceutical industry came to the rescue by dramatically lowering their cost, making a profound difference to the needy on distant shores.

So—India—let me leave you with this one earnest wish: go forth and help share the benefits of practical Indian AI!

Thank you! Dhanyavad!