Rajnish Gupta of EY India stated before to the Union Budget that the government ought to make more data available to the public in order to bolster India’s efforts to develop its own artificial intelligence. It is essential for creating AI models that represent the nation’s linguistic and cultural diversity, he continued.
The majority of worldwide large language models are trained mostly on data from the US and Europe, according to Gupta, a partner in EY India’s Tax and Economic Policy Group. This leads to a western bias that frequently ignores India’s distinct social and cultural backdrop.
He maintained that by making government-held data publicly accessible, local developers would be able to create AI systems that are grounded in Indian reality. In an interview with PTI, Gupta stated that increasing public access to data would contribute in addressing this disparity.
Making a lot of data publicly available is one of the major things that India should do a little better. The majority of the responses you receive are predominantly Western. He stated, “They are very much from a European or American perspective.
“We have our own culture,” he continued, highlighting India’s diversity. Our languages and subtleties are unique to each of us. The government can produce a large amount of this data and make it accessible to those creating LLMs.
Gupta suggested that India could democratize AI by treating data and computer infrastructure as a public utility, drawing comparisons with national digital successes like Aadhaar and UPI. He stated that public funding is essential to building a solid foundation for the ecosystem, but it shouldn’t stifle innovation.
At the same time, Gupta urged the government to continue using a light-touch approach and warned against excessive regulation. He commended India for refusing to implement the EU’s AI regulations, claiming that less intervention would enable regional entrepreneurs to test and create models that are culturally appropriate.
“Don’t tamper with this. Gupta stated, “I believe someone sitting over here will create something if you don’t license, don’t create frictions, don’t introduce any new taxes, and just let them operate.”
Why is this budget important?
Measures to promote growth, increase self-reliance, and protect the Indian economy from external shocks like US tariffs and geopolitical tensions are anticipated to be outlined in the next budget. Additionally, it occurs at a time when the government is juggling the necessity for ongoing public spending with fiscal restraint.
Budget documents are being printed at the ancient North Block, which has the necessary secure printing facilities, even though the finance ministry moved to Kartavya Bhawan in 2025. Strict confidentiality is maintained throughout the process, and access is strictly regulated.
Need for AI skilling and more R&D
India makes up 16% of the world’s AI talent, second only to the US, according to BCG. Recently, a number of large tech companies declared their intention to train AI-ready personnel in India.
Microsoft stated this month that it would invest $17.5 billion to develop AI infrastructure and provide 20 million Indians with AI skills by 2030. Amazon also revealed plans to provide 4 million kids with AI literacy programs by 2030 and invest $35 billion in India to support 15 million small enterprises.
According to Khadim Batti, CEO and co-founder of Whatfix, human preparedness rather than technological readiness is now the major barrier to AI’s return on investment. According to Batti, “India must go beyond basic digital literacy and focus on enabling deep, domain-specific human–AI collaboration across the workforce.”
A roadmap to make AI inexpensive and available to workers in the unorganized sector was introduced by Niti Aayog in October 2025. The government plans to create an R&D ecosystem under the Digital ShramSetu Mission in order to produce cutting-edge technologies at a cheaper cost and to attain affordability and scalability through strategic collaborations.
Industry executives think that India will become a desirable location for investment if it places a significant emphasis on talent that is in line with the demands of global enterprises. Future-ready skills, platform engineering, AI operations, and data engineering that are in line with global company needs are crucial, according to Veena Khandke, SVP & Managing Director of Ensono India.
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According to Khandke, “a forward-looking budget that supports digital talent, strengthens the GCC ecosystem, and enables technology-led growth will further cement India’s role as a trusted global partner in the digital economy.”
