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National AI Strategy and Sovereign AI Infrastructure

Science & Technology

  • PYQs8
  • Articles1
I

Background

India's future economic competitiveness, national security, and technological leadership depend on a robust AI strategy and the development of sovereign AI capabilities, reducing reliance on foreign entities and fostering indigenous innovation.

A National AI Strategy outlines a country's vision, goals, and policy framework for developing and deploying Artificial Intelligence. Central to this is the concept of sovereign AI infrastructure, which involves building and controlling domestic capabilities for AI model hosting, training, and hardware to ensure strategic autonomy, data security, and reduce reliance on foreign entities.

II

Facts & tables

Low R&D Spending
India spends only 0.65% of its GDP on R&D, significantly lower than global leaders (e.g., China 2.4%, US 3.5%).
Sovereign Infrastructure Goal
Build competence to host and operate large language models (LLMs) on Indian soil, treating AI infrastructure as a strategic national capability.
Hardware Diversification
Adopt a 40:30:30 hardware mix (AWS Trainium/AMD, Google TPUs, NVIDIA) to avoid single-vendor lock-in and reduce costs.
National AI Token Policy
Announce and implement a policy over 24 months, starting with public-private partnerships and pilot programs for research institutions and schools.
Static syllabus anchors
Type Reference
Conceptual area Emerging Information Technologies
Conceptual area Fiscal Policy & Public Debt
Conceptual area Geopolitics & International Conflicts
Conceptual area Public Finance & Taxation
Institutions & roles
Body Role
Niti Aayog Formulates policy recommendations for ai and technological development
Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology (MeitY) Implements national ai initiatives and policies
Department of Science & Technology (DST) Funds and promotes scientific research and development
III

Prelims angle

Prelims angle: Statement-based questions

Prelims angle: Factual recall

  • National AI Token Policy proposed to boost R&D.
  • Focus on building sovereign AI infrastructure (host LLMs domestically).
  • Advocates hardware diversification (e.g., 40:30:30 mix) to avoid vendor lock-in.
  • Calls for public-private partnerships with hyperscalers.
  • Aims for technological autonomy and global AI leadership.
Authority vs ministry — NITI Aayog is a policy think tank, while MeitY and DST are government ministries/departments responsible for implementation and funding.

Ministry sets policy; regulator often has quasi-judicial powers.

High-confidence PYQ links
Year Framing tags
2026 Statement-based questions, Factual recall
2026 Multi-statement analysis, Conceptual understanding
2026 Statement-based questions, Conceptual understanding
2026 Multi-statement analysis, Factual recall
2026 Multi-statement analysis, Factual recall
2026 Multi-statement analysis, Conceptual understanding
2026 Multi-statement analysis, Factual recall
2018 Multi-statement analysis, Policy measures

Timeline

  1. Emerging Information Technologies

    Conceptual area

  2. Fiscal Policy & Public Debt

    Conceptual area

  3. Geopolitics & International Conflicts

    Conceptual area

  4. Public Finance & Taxation

    Conceptual area

  5. Prelims 2018

    Multi-statement analysis, Policy measures

  6. Prelims 2026

    Statement-based questions, Factual recall

  7. Prelims 2026

    Multi-statement analysis, Conceptual understanding

  8. Prelims 2026

    Statement-based questions, Conceptual understanding

  9. Prelims 2026

    Multi-statement analysis, Factual recall

  10. Prelims 2026

    Multi-statement analysis, Factual recall

  11. Prelims 2026

    Multi-statement analysis, Conceptual understanding

  12. Prelims 2026

    Multi-statement analysis, Factual recall

  13. Reforms 3.0 — towards the Bharat rate of growth

    India needs a comprehensive National AI Token Policy to boost R&D, make AI accessible, and build sovereign AI infrastructure. This involves strategic funding, hardware diversification, and public-private partnerships to ensure technological autonomy, data security, and foster a thriving AI ecosystem.

See also

National AI Strategy and Sovereign AI Infrastructure
Digital Sovereignty

Past papers

In the news

thehindu.com

Reforms 3.0 — towards the Bharat rate of growth

India needs a comprehensive National AI Token Policy to boost R&D, make AI accessible, and build sovereign AI infrastructure. This involves strategic funding, hardware diversification, and public-private partnerships to ensure technological autonomy, data security, and foster a thriving AI ecosystem.

Try these PYQs

UPSC Prelims 2026 hard Science & Technology Open full page

Consider the following statements with respect to the AI Impact Summit, 2026 held in New Delhi :

1. The Summit's intellectual framework was based on three foundational Sutras : People, Planning, and Progress.
2. The Preamble of the Summit stresses Democratising AI Resources, which acknowledges the Charter for Democratic Diffusion of AI as a binding framework to support locally relevant innovation and strengthen resilient AI ecosystems while respecting national laws.
3. The New Delhi Declaration on AI Impact was structured around seven Chakras (Pillars), which included Access for Social Empowerment, AI for Science, and Secure and Trusted AI.

Which of the statements given above is/are correct ?

UPSC Prelims 2026 medium Economy Open full page

Consider the following statements with reference to the Sagarmala Programme of the Government of India :

I. The Sagarmala Programme seeks to achieve port-led economic growth through cost-effective and sustainable coastal infrastructure.
II. The success of the Sagarmala Programme is reflected in significant growth in coastal and inland waterway shipping, along with improved global port rankings.
III. Sagarmala 2.0 aims to position India as a global maritime innovation hub aligned with Atmanirbhar Bharat and Viksit Bharat 2047 visions.

Which of the following relationships among the above statements is/are correct ?

1. Statement II validates the effectiveness of the strategies envisioned in statement I.
2. Statement III extends the objectives of statement I by embedding them into a future-oriented innovation framework.
3. Statement I contradicts statement III by focusing only on traditional infrastructure instead of modern innovation.

Select the answer using the code given below :

UPSC Prelims 2026 easy Science & Technology Open full page

Which of the following statements with regard to Large Language Models (LLMs) used in machine learning is/are correct ?

1. LLMs assign probabilities to the next possible words and then pick the one with the highest probability.
2. LLMs process data through mathematical optimization to minimise prediction errors.
3. LLMs produce unbiased outputs.

Select the answer using the code given below :

UPSC Prelims 2026 medium Science & Technology Open full page

Which of the following statements with regard to the National Quantum Mission (NQM) is/are correct?

1. It aims at developing intermediate-scale quantum computers with 50-1000 physical qubits.
2. Its implementation includes setting up of four Thematic Hubs (T-Hubs) in academic and national R&D institutes across India.

Select the answer using the code given below:

UPSC Prelims 2018 medium Social Issues & Schemes Open full page

Which of the following is/are the aim/aims of "Digital India" Plan of the Government of India?
1. Formation of India's own Internet companies like China did.
2. Establish a policy framework to encourage overseas multinational corporations that collect Big Data to build their large data centres within our national geographical boundaries.
3. Connect many of our villages to the Internet and bring Wi-Fi to many of our school, public places and major tourist centres

Select the correct answer using the code given below

Show 3 more PYQs
UPSC Prelims 2026 medium Economy Open full page

Which of the following statements about Real-World Assets (RWA) Tokenization are correct?

1. Tokenization is the process of turning real world assets into digital tokens using blockchain technology.
2. Tokenization of real world assets offers 24x7 access, promoting financial inclusion.
3. Tokenization of real world assets will allow the access to high growth investment opportunities for individuals in India.

Select the answer using the code given below:

UPSC Prelims 2026 medium Geography Open full page

Which of the following statements about Rare Earth Elements (REEs) and Critical Minerals is/are correct ?

1. Modern technological innovations including Artificial Intelligence, robotics and space exploration extensively utilise Rare Earth Elements (REEs).
2. China has the highest share in mining of REEs followed by India.
3. The Government of India launched the National Critical Mineral Mission (NCMM) in 2025 to establish a robust framework for self-reliance in the critical mineral sector.
4. Rare Earth Elements are a set of 13 metallic elements.

Select the answer using the code given below :

UPSC Prelims 2026 hard Science & Technology Open full page

Which one of the following pairs of semiconductor plants in India and their locations is **not** correctly matched?

| Semiconductor Plant | Location |
|---|---|
| (a) CG Power and Industrial Solutions Pvt. Ltd. in partnership with Renesas Electronics and STARS Microelectronics | Gujarat |
| (b) Tata Semiconductor Assembly and Test Pvt. Ltd. | Assam |
| (c) HCL-Foxconn Joint Venture India Chip Ltd. | Madhya Pradesh |
| (d) SicSem Pvt. Ltd. | Odisha |