The Rise of Generative AI in India

In the burgeoning landscape of Artificial Intelligence, the rise of Generative AI (GenAI) heralds both promise and responsibility, echoing Uncle Ben’s timeless wisdom: “With great power comes great responsibility.”

As humanity strides into the era of Generative AI (GenAI), the imperative to wield this power responsibly has never been more critical. Just as Peter Parker grappled with his newfound abilities, we too face the monumental task of ensuring our AI creations serve ethically.

The Genesis

The initial wave of Generative Artificial Intelligence  surfaced in 2022, driven by advancements in generative AI creativity, particularly exemplified by tools such as Dall-E 2 and Midjourney. However, the introduction of ChatGPT in November 2022 marked a significant milestone, igniting both excitement and apprehension. This catalyzed a swift adoption of generative AI across enterprises, with many leaders ramping up their AI investments and delving into generative AI within mere months of ChatGPT’s debut. The accessibility of AI technology to non-technical users was realized for the first time with the introduction of ChatGPT. Additionally, major software vendors like Salesforce began integrating generative AI into their applications following the advent of ChatGPT.

Augmenting AI systems’ capabilities with measures such as restricting access to data requiring controlled disclosure can mitigate the risk of potential misuse and safeguard sensitive information from unauthorized access or disclosure.” - Augusto Barros, VP of Product Marketing at Securonix

The report by Elastic “One Year On, Identifying the Impact and Challenges of Early Generative AI Implementation Worldwide”, reveals India appears to be the furthest ahead in adopting generative AI (GenAI) technologies, with 81% of respondents in India already implementing the technology.

India’s Pioneering Role in Generative

AI Adoption

India emerges as a frontrunner in the global adoption of Generative AI (GenAI) technologies, with a remarkable 81% of organizations already implementing these transformative solutions, as revealed by “The Elastic Generative AI Report: One Year On.” Despite this enthusiasm, challenges such as data management, security concerns, and accessibility persist, underscoring the need for strategic partnerships with GenAI providers. Indian businesses foresee significant productivity gains through GenAI-enabled conversational data search capabilities, with potential time savings of two or more days per week per employee. Moreover, the report signals a promising trend of increased budget allocations towards GenAI initiatives in the coming years, highlighting India’s readiness to invest in and leverage the potential of GenAI for innovation and competitive advantage in the global market.

Evaluating the possibilities

Chief Information Officers (CIOs) are at the forefront of evaluating GenAI’s potential impact on their organizations. The allure lies in its capacity to drive innovation, automate tasks, personalize experiences, improve efficiency, and secure a competitive advantage. However, alongside these opportunities, there exist complexities and ethical considerations that demand scrutiny.

When we engaged with numerous CIOs, a recurring sentiment emerged: the majority are currently in the process of evaluating GenAI.

Shobhana Lele, CIO at The Bombay Dyeing and Mfg Co Ltd, reminds us of the essence of AI adoption: “The A in AI stands for ‘Artificial’ - therefore, it’s crucial to Assess before Assimilating. The I represents ‘Intelligence’ - leverage it to Inspire, Innovate, and Implement.”

Bali, Balakrishna D. R., Executive Vice President and Global Services Head of AI and Industry Verticals at Infosys, asserts, ‘“Generative AI has been a game-changer for industries, with enterprises evolving from proofs-of-concept to matured production-grade deployments in knowledge management, AI-augmented software development, service management, documentation, and collateral generation etc. Infosys, by embracing “AI first” initiatives early on, is well-prepared and has been helping them in this journey by leveraging rich domain expertise, structured discovery approach, blueprints, and assets to scale rapidly.

The automotive future is being actively reimagined through generative AI’s boundless creativity. As this technology democratizes innovation, long-anticipated transportation advances are finally within reach. - Rohan Shravan, Founder and CEO of Tresa Motors.

Generative AI will play a crucial role in supporting lifelong learning initiatives. As individuals seek to acquire new skills and knowledge throughout their lives, AI-powered learning platforms will provide personalized learning paths, microlearning modules, and just-in-time resources to support continuous learning. - Shivani Priyaa , Business Head - Oda class

The enterprise generative AI landscape is witnessing a tectonic shift due to successive launches of powerful models having multi-modal capabilities, new research in finetuning and augmentation techniques, and powerful platforms and computing. Apart from amplifying existing gains, it is also opening a whole new realm of possibilities by making advanced use cases accessible and viable. But this necessitates an even stronger focus on responsible AI, to address issues like lack of transparency, hallucinations, bias, the scope of human review, security vulnerabilities – right from the inception of these projects.” He adds.

GenAI has demonstrated remarkable capabilities in generating content that is indistinguishable from human-created data, opening up new possibilities for innovation and efficiency in numerous industries.

Personalized Application Journeys

Generative AI, particularly through GANs Generative Adversarial Network (GAN) and transformer models, has catalyzed transformative applications across diverse fields. In art, it fosters the creation of unique artworks, music compositions, and literature, often in collaboration with human creators. Content creation benefits from AI’s ability to generate text, images, and videos, aiding creators in ideation, scalability, and personalization. Virtual try-on experiences and fashion design benefit from GANs’ capacity to generate realistic images, facilitating prototyping and trend forecasting. In medicine, generative models assist in generating synthetic medical images, bolstering datasets for training, and augmenting analysis tools for improved diagnosis and treatment planning. These applications underscore the profound impact of generative AI in reshaping creative expression, consumer experiences, and critical domains like healthcare.

In the Automotive Sector

Mr. Rohan Shravan, Founder and CEO of Tresa Motors, sheds light on how generative AI is revolutionizing the automotive sector. By integrating sensors with AI algorithms, Tresa Motors ensures enhanced safety and autonomy in electric vehicles. Generative AI enables detailed 3D mapping, anomaly detection, and self-driving capabilities, paving the way for safer and more efficient mobility solutions. Looking ahead, Mr. Shravan envisions generative AI predicting driver behavior and seamlessly coordinating fleets of self-driving cars, ushering in an era of sustainable transportation.

In the EdTech Sector

Shivani Priyaa, Business Head of Oda class, highlights the impact of generative AI in education. From content generation to language-specific learning and automated scoring, generative AI is revolutionizing how students learn and educators teach. Priyaa foresees future applications including enhanced personalization, interactive learning environments through virtual and augmented reality, and lifelong learning support, empowering individuals to acquire new skills throughout their lives.

In the Financial Sector

Tushar Das, Chief Product and Data Science Officer at kuhoo, discusses the role of generative AI in finance. From customer service to knowledge management, generative AI-powered chatbots are streamlining processes and enhancing customer experiences. Das envisions future applications including personalized application journeys, document search, and summarization, revolutionizing how financial services are delivered and consumed.

In the Customer Experience Space

Chaitanya Chokkareddy, Co-founder and Chief Technology Officer at Ozonetel, emphasizes the significance of GenAI in enhancing customer experiences. Through Ozonetel’s GenAI-powered solutions, businesses extract valuable insights from digital conversations, providing real-time context to agents and facilitating quicker issue resolution for customers. Chokkareddy underscores how GenAI solutions fine-tune sales pitches, adeptly handle objections, and identify root causes of customer dissatisfaction, driving higher conversions and continuous improvement.

Currently, the major use case of utilizing Generative AI in Education Loans and Financing is around customer service and knowledge management. Chatbots trained on data and policies specific to a business are being used to answer customer queries more smartly, with tools like ChatGPT in the background. It is also being used to create the initial draft of policy and process documents. - Tushar Das, Chief Product and Data Science Officer, Kuhoo.

Generative AI can be a real game-changer for programmers and full-stack app developers. It can help them generate code snippets or starter code files based on their specific needs, saving them time and effort. Plus, it can also generate test cases to make sure the code is solid and free of errors, can act as a pair programmer to help review and understand code better. And it can even create realistic data for testing and development. - Nishchay Shah, CTO of Cactus Communications

Across Various Phases of Digital Transformation

Anand Srinivasan, Chief Strategy Officer at o9 Solutions, provides insights into the strategic implementation of AI throughout digital transformation phases. From engaging stakeholders to translating blueprints into executable code and upskilling teams, AI plays a crucial role in driving successful transformations. Srinivasan emphasizes the importance of AI in continuous data gathering and insights generation for ongoing improvement.

Nishchay Shah, CTO of Cactus Communications, delves into the diverse applications of Generative AI across industries. From medical communications to drug discovery and development, Generative AI is accelerating research and innovation. Shah highlights how Generative AI aids in summarizing scientific literature, generating molecular structures, and even creating code snippets for programmers. Looking ahead, Shah envisions personalized content creation and the evolution of advanced agents as promising future applications of Generative AI.

Data Privacy and Security

Ensuring robust data privacy and security in generative AI (Gen AI) systems is paramount to foster trust and mitigate potential risks. This involves employing techniques such as data anonymization, aggregation, and differential privacy to protect sensitive information during training. Secure development practices, including encryption and access controls, safeguard the integrity of Gen AI models against unauthorized access or tampering. Transparent communication with users regarding data collection and processing, along with obtaining explicit consent, is essential to uphold user rights and build trust. Compliance with relevant regulations like GDPR or CCPA ensures adherence to legal standards, while continuous monitoring and updates help mitigate emerging threats. Ethical considerations, including fairness, accountability, and transparency, guide the development and deployment of Gen AI systems, ensuring they are built responsibly and uphold societal values.

Maheswaran S, Country Manager South Asia at Varonis Systems, sheds light on the imperative of prioritizing responsible AI practices. Amidst the proliferation of data-driven technologies, prioritizing data privacy and security is paramount when working with Generative AI. Maheswaran highlights the risks associated with AI Copilots, which can potentially expose sensitive data to malicious actors. However, he emphasizes that with proper safeguards in place, AI Copilots can be introduced and used safely.

A data-centric security strategy is crucial in the age of AI, ensuring that access to sensitive information is restricted to those with legitimate needs. Implementing a least privilege model and robust data encryption measures are recommended to mitigate the risk of data breaches and safeguard sensitive information from potential misuse.

Infosys, by embracing “AI first” initiatives early on, is well-prepared and has been helping them in this journey by leveraging rich domain expertise, structured discovery approach, blueprints, and assets to scale rapidly. - Bali, Balakrishna D. R., Executive Vice President and Global Services Head of AI and Industry Verticals at Infosys.

Augusto Barros, VP of Product Marketing at Securonix and Cyber Security Evangelist at Securonix provides insights into the multifaceted landscape of Generative AI (Gen AI), “Protecting data privacy and security is paramount when working with Generative AI. Given the risks associated with AI systems accessing sensitive information, strict guardrails must be in place to control data access privileges.”

“Augmenting AI systems’ capabilities with measures such as restricting access to data requiring controlled disclosure can mitigate the risk of potential misuse and safeguard sensitive information from unauthorized access or disclosure.”

Regulatory Landscape

The rapid advancement of artificial intelligence, particularly Generative AI, presents both opportunities and challenges for policymakers and regulatory bodies worldwide. As this technology continues to evolve at a staggering pace, it often outstrips the development of regulatory frameworks designed to govern its ethical use and mitigate potential risks. Joseph Sudheer Reddy Thumma, CEO of Magellanic Cloud, emphasizes the crucial need for flexible and adaptive regulations in the burgeoning field of Generative AI. He stresses, “In the rapidly evolving landscape of Generative AI, regulatory frameworks must remain agile and adaptable to keep pace with technological advancements. We must foster collaboration among stakeholders from diverse backgrounds, including technologists, ethicists, and the public, to ensure that regulatory decisions reflect a broad spectrum of perspectives and uphold ethical standards.” Thumma’s remarks highlight the critical importance of flexible regulations and inclusive dialogue in navigating the ethical complexities of AI development and deployment.

Balakrishna D. R. emphasizes the significance of rapidly evolving regulatory frameworks, particularly with the enactment of various provisions of the EU AI Act this year. “The regulatory landscape is transforming rapidly, and different provisions of the EU AI Act are coming into effect this year, further catalyzing the growth of regulations around the world.” Infosys is addressing this via a three-pronged approach. We have instituted and streamlined AI governance via our Responsible AI Office, which has centralized accountability to ensure the safe use of AI complying with laws and regulations by conducting reviews, assessments, and audits, continuously monitoring and developing and enforcing our AI policies. Secondly, we are building process guardrails to ensure Responsible AI by design, embedding ethical consideration throughout the AI lifecycle, from data preparation and training to inferencing. Thirdly, we are building automated technical guardrails, that intelligently detect and mitigate these threats in the input and generated output, with mechanisms to explain the rationale behind it. Consequently, Infosys is among the first companies globally to be certified in ISO 420001:2023 for AI management systems.” He adds.

Conclusion

As India embraces the transformative potential of Generative AI, the journey ahead demands a delicate balance between innovation and responsibility. By fostering a culture of ethical AI adoption and prioritizing data privacy and security, India can harness the full potential of GenAI to drive innovation, empower industries, and shape a brighter future for all.

aanchalg@cybermedia.co.in