CHENNAI, India – India, a country with a strong high-tech industry, is applying its brains to artificial intelligence (AI) not only in business but also in its military, while its neighbor and regional rival China continues to pour money into AI research Billions of dollars.
A 2023 report by the Delhi Policy Group, an Indian think tank, said India spends about $50 million annually on artificial intelligence. The report noted that while India’s spending is a “good first step,” it is “clearly insufficient compared with our main strategic challenger, China, which is spending more than 30 times that amount. If we do not want to fall behind in technology cycle, more investment must be made, primarily to promote the development of local industry players.
Antoine Levesques, a researcher at the International Institute for Strategic Studies (IISS), told Fox News Digital that India “is working hard to build national sovereign AI capabilities that can be used in its defense.”
“India has very ambitious plans,” he added. He pointed to the need to purchase foreign-made chips to “enhance artificial intelligence hardware capabilities,” noting that “its technology industry already has a wealth of talent.”
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On October 10, 2023, East Tech 2023 was held in Guwahati, Assam, India. The Eastern Command of the Indian Army demonstrated the latest defense artillery robot. (David Talukdar/NurPhoto via AP)
In October, the military unveiled a robotic companion capable of tasks such as traversing and scouting rough terrain, clearing unexploded artillery shells and acting as a stretcher for wounded soldiers. It has two arms and two cameras and a platform with two additional cameras. The robot will be manually operated by ground controllers. The military may further develop this technology. The country’s navy is also believed to have autonomous aquatic robots that can reach places humans cannot.
“The battery-powered platform is capable of withstanding rugged terrain and measures one meter by one meter,” an Indian Army official told TOI.
The Indian Army’s elite Signals Technology Evaluation and Adaptation Group (STEAG) is studying and evaluating the implementation of emerging technologies such as artificial intelligence and other potential updates in the evolving world of modern warfare.
According to Levesques’ analysis, India and the United States have and are collaborating in the field of artificial intelligence.
In a 2022 meeting, US Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin met Indian Defense Minister Raksha Mantri Shri Rajnath Singh at the 9th ADMM (ASEAN Defense Ministers Meeting) , artificial intelligence is one of the topics they discuss. In the same year, U.S. President Biden and Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi announced a partnership called the “U.S.-India Critical and Emerging Technologies Initiative.”
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Union Defense Minister Rajnath Singh attends the Artificial Intelligence Defense Exhibition at Vigyan Bhawan in New Delhi, India, on July 11, 2022. (Arvind Yadav/Hindustan Times via Getty Images)
Levesques described the talent pool in India’s tech industry. He also pointed out that India’s higher English proficiency may give it a slight advantage in “talent supply”, but said “this is not enough to compete with China’s capabilities.”
“It takes time to adapt to American technology and develop your own technology,” he added. He also pointed out that India is doing both in terms of economy and defense sector.
“Generative artificial intelligence (based on large language models) has brought rapid progress, especially in understanding the common operating picture,” Patrick Cronin, chairman of Asia-Pacific security at the Hudson Institute in Washington, D.C., told Fox News Digital. So the military can use this for intelligence officers to understand what’s happening on the battlefield.
On May 19, 2024, Indian Army soldiers, CRPF and JK police were on alert to enhance security ahead of the fifth phase of voting in the Lok Sabha elections in Baramulla, Jammu and Kashmir, India. (Nasir Kachroo/NurPhoto via Getty Images)
Artificial intelligence may help gauge what overseas countries like Pakistan and China are doing. Cronin explained that similar to ChatGPT (also a form of generating artificial intelligence), the technology can be used to provide information about real-time simulations and exercises, leading to information about what is likely to happen.
Its potential military uses are in three areas – intelligence, training and education.
Cronin warned that “China has a robot army” with multiple autonomous drones in its arsenal, but he still believes widespread use of “autonomous systems” is still “five to 10 years away” overall. .
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On April 12, 2018, Xinhua News Agency released a file photo showing President Xi Jinping delivering a speech after reviewing the Chinese People’s Liberation Army Navy fleet in the South China Sea. (Li Gang/Xinhua via AP, File)
A senior Indian defense ministry official told DW that artificial intelligence-powered drones and robots could patrol borders, reducing the need for human intervention in dangerous situations. Fox Digital News reached out to the Indian military for comment but did not receive an immediate response.
Cronin noted a number of concerns, including the belief that artificial intelligence, like any developing technology, can be used for a variety of purposes, including those nefarious, such as using deepfakes to spread disinformation and other negative effects.
Thousands of Indians and Chinese in overseas universities are researching artificial intelligence. Cronin said he believed India had an advantage in civilian areas of artificial intelligence development, but that China had a more “centralized and well-funded” military system to compete with it.
Indian Army soldiers cross the Srinagar-Leh National Highway in a military vehicle on September 1, 2020. (Faisal Khan/NurPhoto via Getty Images)
“When you think about facial recognition and tying that to distant battlefields with satellite imagery and potentially lethal drones, that’s something that you couldn’t do 30-40 years ago, but it’s very easy to do now,” Grams said. Ronin added.
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“The consequences of war remain horrific and tragic, and it needs to be as ethical, precise, reasonable and limited as possible. India can play a leading role in the debate about the increasing use of artificial intelligence on the battlefield or in society. Overall , these issues are still at the beginning of the future laws of war and the guardrails of high-tech civilization.
The Indian military continues to promote ambitions and research in the field of artificial intelligence and seeks to establish a level playing field with China.
