Global tech companies and local start-ups are looking to unlock lucrative new markets in India with artificial intelligence platforms adapted for the vast range of languages and industries in the world’s most populous country.
Microsoft, Google and start-ups including Silicon Valley-backed Sarvam AI and Krutrim — founded by Bhavish Aggarwal of Indian mobility group Ola — are all working on AI voice assistants and chatbots that function in languages such as Hindi and Tamil. The tools are aimed at fast-growing Indian industries, such as the country’s large customer service and call centre sector.
India has 22 official languages, with Hindi the most widespread, but researchers estimate the languages and dialects spoken by its 1.4bn people rise into the thousands. Google on Tuesday launched its Gemini AI assistant in nine Indian languages.