In a significant move towards fostering innovation and technological advancement, the Indian government is reportedly planning to allocate up to INR 10,000 Cr for the establishment of supercomputing and quantum computing hubs. The initiative, expected to be announced during the upcoming Global Artificial Intelligence Summit and Awards on January 18 and 19, aims to create a robust digital infrastructure through public-private partnerships.
Government officials close to the matter revealed that the proposed hubs will facilitate access to high-performance computing resources for startups, micro, small, and medium enterprises (MSMEs), and other companies. These resources will be made available either on a lease basis or through a “compute-as-a-service” model.
“The idea is to add up to 30,000 GPUs (graphic processing units) overall in a somewhat DPI (digital public infrastructure) model,” stated one official, highlighting the scale of the project.
According to sources, the quantum computing hubs will initially be established within higher education academic institutions and prominent government research and development centers. The overarching goal is to provide computing strength to Indian companies engaged in artificial intelligence (AI) and other emerging technologies.
The development timeline for the initiative is projected to span up to 10 years, reflecting the ambitious scale of the plan.
In addition to the announcement regarding compute capacity as a service, the government may unveil the adoption of proposals from seven working groups on AI during the summit. This move aligns with the government’s commitment to leverage emerging technologies for comprehensive national development.
In October 2023, the Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology (MeitY) explored the idea of establishing a cluster of 25,000 GPUs through public-private partnerships. This initiative, along with subsequent collaborations such as the memoranda of understanding with IBM in areas like AI, semiconductor, and quantum technology, demonstrates the government’s proactive approach in driving technological innovation.
