Paris AI Action Summit, 2025

The Paris AI Action Summit, 2025, marks a significant milestone in AI governance, co-chaired by India and France, bringing together over 90 countries to address global challenges related to AI. India, with its expertise in Digital Public Infrastructure (DPI) and STEM, is well-positioned to bridge the divide between Western technological ambitions and the needs of the Global South, advocating for a balanced approach that fosters innovation while ensuring AI safety.

Applications of AI in Governance:

1. Enhancing Policy Formulation and Decision-Making:

• AI aids in data-driven policymaking by analyzing vast datasets to predict economic trends and optimize resource allocation.
• For instance, NITI Aayog uses AI tools from IIT Delhi to assess socio-economic conditions with satellite images, while the Bhashini project enhances multilingual communication for policy outreach.

2. Strengthening Public Service Delivery and Efficiency:

• AI-driven automation reduces bureaucratic delays and human errors, improving service delivery.
• IUDX, developed by IISc Bengaluru, facilitates seamless data exchange among urban stakeholders, enhancing service efficiency.

3. Improving Law Enforcement and Internal Security:

• AI supports predictive policing and real-time crime mapping, as seen in Delhi Police’s AI-driven Facial Recognition System, assisting with crime resolution and locating missing persons.

4. Revolutionizing Healthcare and Pandemic Management:

• AI-enabled diagnostics and robotic surgeries improve healthcare access. Startups like Niramai and ChironX use AI to detect breast cancer and retinal abnormalities.

5. Optimizing Agricultural Productivity and Food Security:

• AI-powered tools like Kisan e-Mitra provide information about government schemes, and AI models for pest detection help ensure healthy crops, benefiting farmers.

6. Enhancing Justice Delivery and Legal Systems:

• AI tools like SUPACE aid in judicial efficiency, speeding up case processing and enhancing legal research.

7. Tackling Climate Change and Environmental Management:

• AI helps with hyperlocal weather forecasting, climate modeling, and disaster prediction, and tools like CoS-it-FloWS in flood-prone areas aid in better forecasting.

8. Enhancing Education and Personalized Learning:

• AI-powered EdTech platforms offer adaptive learning, improving education accessibility.

9. Strengthening Urban Governance and Smart Cities:

• AI manages traffic and waste efficiently in cities like Bengaluru, reducing congestion and improving waste management.

10. Improving Financial Governance and Taxation:

• AI detects fraud in financial transactions, streamlines tax filing, and optimizes subsidy allocations to avoid leakages, as seen with MuleHunter.ai by the Reserve Bank of India.

Issues AI Poses to India’s Governance Landscape:

1. Job Displacement:

• AI-driven automation may lead to massive job losses, especially in labor-intensive industries, impacting India’s workforce. For example, the World Economic Forum estimates AI could displace 75 million jobs by 2025.

1. Algorithmic Bias and Discrimination:

• AI models can reinforce discriminatory biases, leading to unfair governance outcomes, as seen in biased hiring tools and the Amazon AI recruitment tool case.

1. Privacy Violations:

• AI-powered surveillance systems, such as facial recognition, raise privacy concerns, particularly with Delhi Police’s facial recognition technology and UPSC’s plans for AI in exams.

1. Deepfakes and Misinformation:

• AI-generated deepfakes can undermine elections, as seen in India’s 2024 elections, where deepfake videos of political leaders went viral.

1. Cybersecurity Risks:

• AI-powered cyberattacks target critical infrastructure, increasing threats in sectors like banking and defense. AI-enhanced cyber scams are growing in India.

1. Digital Divide:

• Unequal AI access between urban and rural India, with only 24% of rural households having Internet access, limits AI’s reach in rural governance.

1. Environmental Concerns:

• AI systems require vast computing power, increasing energy consumption and carbon emissions. Data centers in India raise concerns about electricity demand and water usage.

1. Weak Regulations and Policy Gaps:

• India lacks a comprehensive AI regulatory framework, leaving room for unchecked AI development, unlike the EU’s AI Act.

1. Dependency on Foreign AI Technologies:

• India’s reliance on foreign AI infrastructure for cloud services and AI chips creates vulnerabilities in digital sovereignty and national security.

Measures India Can Adopt to Enhance AI Governance:

1. Comprehensive AI Law:

• India should create an AI-specific law that ensures balanced regulation, promoting innovation while addressing issues like algorithmic accountability and bias mitigation.

1. National AI Regulatory Authority (AIGA):

• India can set up a National AI Regulatory Authority to oversee ethical AI practices, conduct AI audits, and establish impact assessments.

1. AI Safety for the Global South:

• India can lead AI safety initiatives for developing nations by using its Digital Public Infrastructure (DPI) and promoting inclusive AI frameworks in BRICS or G20.

1. Explainable AI (XAI):

• India should mandate explainable AI policies, ensuring transparency and accountability for AI decisions in governance, policing, and financial services.

1. AI Sandboxes:

• India could set up AI regulatory sandboxes for startups to innovate in real-world conditions, testing AI applications in financial and healthcare sectors.

1. Indigenous AI Development:

• India must reduce dependence on foreign AI technologies by investing in domestic AI R&D, semiconductor manufacturing, and AI infrastructure.

1. Regulating AI-generated Disinformation:

• India should introduce a Deepfake Regulation under the Digital India Act, preventing the spread of AI-generated political misinformation during elections.

Conclusion:

The Paris AI Action Summit 2025 is a pivotal moment for global AI regulation. India, with its growing digital economy, must play a key role in shaping balanced AI policies that promote innovation while ensuring ethical governance. By adopting inclusive measures and setting global precedents, India can enhance its role as a digital powerhouse in the AI governance landscape.