IndiaAI, Meta launch AI center in IIT Jodhpur; will promote student start-ups

IndiaAI and Meta have announced the establishment of the Center for Generative AI, Shrijan at IIT Jodhpur and the launch of the “YuvAI initiative for Skilling and Capacity Building”, in partnership with All India Council for Technical Education (AICTE). This is aimed at propelling the advancement of open-source artificial intelligence (AI) in India, said the Ministry of Electronics and IT in a statement on Friday.

The CoE will Identify and empower the next generation of AI innovators and entrepreneurs using open-source AI and exploring possibilities in Large Language Model LLMs. The research under its aegis will be shared with students via AICTE and via direct connection with colleges.

Srijan will engage young developers to deploy open-source LLMs across India and unearth indigenous use cases through Hackathons. It will conduct Master Training activation workshops for select colleges, data labs, and ITIs, introducing them to foundations of LLMs to ignite interest. It will help support in creation of student-led startups experimenting with Open Source LLMs by identifying the young developers.

Highlighting the power of collaborative innovation, S Krishnan, Secretary, Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology (MeitY), emphasized the significance of the partnership between India, IIT Jodhpur, AICTE and Meta. He stated, “These initiatives are pivotal in creating a robust ecosystem for ground-breaking research, skill development, and open-source innovation, advancing AI technology while ensuring its responsible and ethical deployment.”

The Centre of Excellence was announced under the aegis of Meity on July 27th, 2023. Srijan will ensure the long-term sustainability of the GenAI research beyond the initial phase supported by seed funding from Meta & support from IndiaAI. IIT Jodhpur will devise a comprehensive plan that encompasses diverse revenue streams, strategic partnerships & continuous innovation. Its progress will be monitored annually by the joint committee of MeitY and Meta for the duration of the funding support.

Srijan will nurture the startup ecosystem of AI and other Emerging Technologies. In doing so, IIT Jodhpur will enhance accessibility to AI computing resources for researchers, startups, and all the other organizations with limited resources. It will also enable knowledge sharing and collaboration through workshops, seminars, conferences, and similar platforms.

Programs developed and initiatives taken by Srijan will enhance AI & Emerging Technologies skills and expertise among researchers, professionals and students in India, contributing to the growth of AI talent in the country with a focus on developing responsible AI through collaborative development of comprehensive tools and guidelines.

Meta has committed to invest up to ₹750 lakh (as a donation) over three years. The IndiaAI will support the researcher working in the CoE being set up at IIT Jodhpur’s Centre Srijan. The GenAI Centre of Excellence, Srijan, aims to foster a collaborative ecosystem in the field of Generative AI through groundbreaking research and application development to address current national challenges in education, mobility and healthcare domains. This research will contribute to global advancements in Generative AI.

Through education, capacity building, and policy advisory, the center will be empowering the next generation of researchers, students, and practitioners with the knowledge and tools necessary for the responsible development and deployment of GenAI technologies. Funding will be used by IIT Jodhpur towards activities of the GenAI CoE.

The key objective of IIT Jodhpur’s Centre of Excellence, Srijan is to foster an indigenous research ecosystem in the country. It aims to nurture 1 lakh youth developers & entrepreneurs in AI skills over the next three years. The idea is to remain future-ready in our Development of innovative Indigenous AI solutions in key areas like healthcare, education, agriculture, smart cities, smart mobility, sustainability, and financial and social inclusion. IIT Jodhpur COE Srijan will collaborate with academic, government and industry stakeholders both national & global to advance GenAI research and technology. This includes Open science innovation, Develop and transfer technology solutions, Education & capacity building besides Policy advisory and governance.

The CoE will have an academic research team comprising faculty members, post-doctoral fellows, doctorate, graduate students, and administrative staff from IIT Jodhpur to be coordinated by the center director, who will also be the Principal Investigator of the project. The team will interface with the Gati Shakti Vishwavidyalaya for railways, PGI Chandigarh, AIIMS Jodhpur, and IHBAS Delhi for the healthcare vertical.

Meta, in collaboration with MeitY and the All India Council for Technical Education (AICTE), also launched the “YuvaAI initiative for Skilling and Capacity Building”. This program aims to bridge the AI talent gap in the country by empowering 100,000 students and young developers aged 18-30 to leverage open-source large language models (LLMs) to address real-world challenges. It aims to build capacity in generative AI skills, utilizing open-source LLMs while fostering AI innovation across key sectors.

Over the next three years, the initiative will train one lakh youth, developers, and entrepreneurs, contributing significantly to India’s AI ecosystem across critical sectors such as healthcare, education, agriculture, smart cities, and financial inclusion. This will include the establishment of a Gen AI Resource Hub with courses, case studies, and open datasets; an LLM for Young Developers Course designed by Meta; and Master Training Activation Workshops to introduce participants to foundational AI concepts.

The program also features Unleash LLM Hackathons, where students will submit AI solutions to address real-world problems, with top ideas receiving mentoring, seed grants, and market support. Additionally, the AI Innovation Accelerator will identify and support 10 student-led startups experimenting with open-source AI models, offering incubation and visibility.

Published - October 26, 2024 08:43 pm IST