Is India Just the Guinea Pig for Silicon Valley’s AI Ambitions?
Author(s): INDRANIL BANERJEE
Originally published on Towards AI.
We provide the data; they own the models. Decoding the massive gap between India’s “AI Superpower” dreams and the ground reality
A few days back I got a notification that I can avail the latest Gemini 3 Pro LLM for free for the next 18 months, worth Rs. 32000, by activating it through my Jio SIM. Earlier, Perplexity and OpenAI offered similar freebies for Indian users. Initially these free offers were exciting to me, but now I am a little skeptical. Maybe I am the product, or more accurately the experiment, for these tech giants who are offering their flagship products for free. This skepticism provoked me to do detailed research on this topic, and the findings are quite disturbing.
The article examines the concept of digital colonialism, highlighting how major US tech companies dominate India’s AI landscape while exploiting local resources and data. It discusses instances of digital imperialism affecting vulnerable populations, like the control of food aid through digital frameworks, and references the Cambridge Analytica scandal to showcase the potential for misuse of data. The author emphasizes the need for India to develop a sovereign AI framework to regain control over its digital future amidst these challenges, reflecting on investment gaps and the struggle against existing power dynamics in the AI ecosystem.
Read the full blog for free on Medium.
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Note: Article content contains the views of the contributing authors and not Towards AI.
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