India's AI Approach Must Be Sovereign by Design; Data Control, Capabilities to Benefit Everyone: BCGX

AI in India will drive productivity, quality, and role redesign in the near term rather than mass unemployment, but the country must pursue a "sovereign by design" approach, maintaining control over its data and capabilities while staying globally integrated to ensure AI benefits everyone, according to BCGX.

India's talent base is a real advantage, with 13% of the global AI talent pool as new centres of influence emerge beyond AI superpowers US and China, top officials of BCGX, the AI, digital and innovation division of global consulting firm BCG, told PTI in an emailed interview.

"The Asia-Pacific region is often described as being ahead of the curve in AI adoption, for example, a recent BCG report found that 92% of employees in India use AI at least several times a week," Sylvain Duranto, Global Leader BCGX, said, referring to how AI has gained traction in India.

On India's AI talent pool, Duranto said, "Beyond the AI superpowers of the US and China, new centres of influence are emerging. With a population of 1.4 billion, and (India has) 13% of the global AI talent pool".

Elaborating, BCGX India Leader Nipun Kalra said, "BCG-sized estimates put India's AI talent pool at 6,00,000 today, projected to exceed 1.25 million by 2027, with an AI skill penetration factor of 3.09 (highest among G20/OECD)".

However, he said, "With over 2,000 AI start-ups, India is only second to the US, but lags in AI patents with less than 1% patents from India".

India needs to solve for AI adoption formally by the workforce with scaled pilots that are enforced organisationally to drive success, Kalra added.

When asked about the impact of jobs in India, he said, "The near-term story in India is productivity and quality uplift-paired with role redesign more than mass displacement".

Citing BCG's executive survey, he said 64% expect 'AI and humans working side by side', and fewer than 10% expect a net headcount decrease due to AI automation.

Yet, Kalra said, toil tasks -- repetitive, rule-based activities will increasingly be automated, while 'reasoning tasks' such as analysis, synthesis, decision support will be augmented through AI copilots.

On the other hand, expertise-driven roles such as healthcare, advisory, engineering, and financial services will see the strongest augmentation, where AI enhances judgment rather than replaces it, Kalra noted.

When asked what policy safeguards are needed so that AI remains a boon, not a bane, he said, "India's approach should be AI for all, sovereign by design".

"Sovereign AI is not about isolation. It is about ensuring that India controls its data, context, and critical AI capabilities, while remaining globally connected." Kalra stressed the need to "scale skilling and transition pathways" so that "AI adoption creates productivity, not displacement, especially across MSMEs and Tier-2/3 cities".

Noting that sovereign AI infrastructure is critical, he said it will play a key role in reducing dependence on external platforms while ensuring affordability.

"Governance must move beyond compliance to proactive enablement," he said, adding that already the IndiaAI Safe & Trusted AI Mission and the DPDP Act provide guardrails for privacy, accountability, and responsible deployment at scale.

Commenting on sectors which will see economy-wide AI impact in the next two to three years, Kalra said, "Over the next few years, AI impact in India will be significant in IT services, financial institutions, agriculture, and healthcare".

Citing a report by BCGX and FICCI, he also said AI adoption in Indian MSMEs can generate over $500 billion in economic value.