India, Aug. 28 -- Can OpenAI Meet India's Terms?

At OpenAI's flagship summit last week, IndiaAI Mission CEO Abhishek Singh delivered a clear ultimatum - to build in India, the AI giant must operate on India's terms. Singh quipped that it was "high time" OpenAI emulated its name and became open source. So, what does the government want?

What The Mandate? The Indian government has lined up a slew of demands for the AI giant - open-source models, strict data localisation and tools for mass public use, not just elite institutions. The Centre's vision extends beyond AI copilots, which the company announced last week, and seeks sovereign AI systems that run on government infrastructure, speak local languages, and reach underserved regions.

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