Economic Survey 2025-26 Proposes Creation of AI Economic Council, Flags Gap In Data-Curation Startups

The Economic Survey 2025–26, tabled in Parliament by the Finance Minister, signals the Centre’s intent to give artificial intelligence focused analytical attention. It proposes the creation of an AI Economic Council, separate from the Governance Council, and notes that startups specialising in training-data curation have yet to emerge at scale in India.

The move underscores a shift towards viewing AI not merely as a technological priority, but as a moral and economic imperative that must be aligned with India’s unique socio-economic realities.

“India is a labour rich economy, and the unchecked replacement of the workforce by automation has destabilising effects. The institution must work closely with private sector firms to develop a roadmap for AI deployment over the next decade, outlining crucial details such as the profile of jobs affected, the geographies where displacement will be most concentrated, and the magnitude of jobs that will be both automated and augmented due to AI,” said the survey. 

For the first time, the Economic Survey dedicates an entire chapter to artificial intelligence.

The council  will operate as a coordinating authority that is responsible for aligning technology deployment with the evolution of India’s education and skilling infrastructure, while navigating resource constraints and developmental priorities. 

The core governance principles for such an institution would involve AI adoption must be explicitly anchored in human welfare and economic inclusion, AI policy must be calibrated to India’s labour-market realities characterised by skill heterogeneity, AI adoption should be aligned with institutional readiness and the maturity of skill pipelines, Skill policy must stand equal to technology policy and Ethical implications and boundaries must be clearly defined.

The survey has largely emphasised that AI should not be regarded merely as a technological advancement, but as a strategic priority with far-reaching implications for the future of India’s critical infrastructure, labour market, foreign policy and culture.

Apart from proposing the AI Economic Council, the Survey highlights India’s large and diverse data reserves, the critical importance of data safety, and the need for regulatory oversight of AI firms as key policy pathways where government action is expected in the coming period.

“The country’s strengths lie in application-led innovation, the productive use of domestic data, human capital depth, and the ability of public institutions to coordinate distributed efforts,” the Survey noted.

It also flags the surging demand for critical AI infrastructure, including GPUs and other essential inputs for data centres, outlining these supply-side constraints as central challenges and signalling the need for a calibrated policy response as India advances its AI ambitions.