Recent Current Affairs related to AI

Union Minister Nirmala Sitharaman has announced that the Government of India (GoI) has established a high-level panel to evaluate systemic threats posed by “Mythos”, an advanced AI model developed by Anthropic. The announcement was made after a meeting with Union Minister Ashwini Vaishnaw and senior banking executives.

The committee is chaired by CS Setty, the Chairman of the SBI and leader of the Indian Banks’ Association (IBA). The primary objective of the panel is to assess “AI-born” risks to the financial sector and identify strategic technology investments required to enhance national resilience.

Lee Jae Myung, the President of the Republic of Korea, accompanied by First Lady Kim Hea Kyung, has visited India at the invitation of PM Narendra Modi. During a bilateral summit at Hyderabad House in New Delhi, both nations announced a “Joint Strategic Vision” to expand the India-ROK Special Strategic Partnership (SSP) for the 2026-2030 period.

The visit resulted in the establishment of an Industrial Cooperation Committee (ICC) and the formulation of a framework for the “India–Korea Digital Bridge” to facilitate collaboration in AI, semiconductors, and Information Technology. Both countries also agreed to resume negotiations for upgrading the Comprehensive Economic Partnership Agreement (CEPA).

Srikanth Velamakanni, the Co-Founder and Group Chief Executive of Fractal, has been appointed as the Chairman of the National Association of Software and Service Companies (NASSCOM) for the 2026-2027 term. He succeeds Sindhu Gangadharan.

Kishor Patil, the MD & CEO of KPIT Technologies, has been elected as the Vice Chairperson of NASSCOM.

BharatGen Technology Foundation has signed a 5-year MoU with L&T Semiconductor Technologies (LTSCT) and L&T-Vyoma, subsidiaries of Larsen & Toubro (L&T), to develop the first end-to-end sovereign AI compute platform in India.

The partnership aims to establish a completely indigenous AI ecosystem to reduce dependency on international supply chains and imported hardware, thereby fostering domestic technological self-reliance.

DataKaveri Systems, the commercial arm of the Centre of Data for Public Good (CDPG) of the IISc Bengaluru, has signed an MoU with the Japan-based ONESTRUCTION Inc to integrate construction data into AI-ready urban data exchange systems across Indian and Japanese cities.

The collaboration involves connecting the openIBM platform of the latter with the Intelligent Universal Data Exchange (IUDX) of the former. It is to be noted that the IUDX platform is currently operational in 55 smart cities in India.

The Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA) has received ‘Prajna’, an indigenously developed satellite imaging system designed to provide real-time decision support for security agencies. The system, an AI-enabled platform, was developed by the Centre for AI and Robotics (CAIR), a laboratory under the Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO). It utilizes advanced imaging to enhance the technical and operational capabilities of security forces.

N Alim Yusuf, a botanist from Kerala, has been honoured with the World Wide Fund for Nature (WWF) National Award. The award was presented during the National ECHO Youth Innovation Summit 2026, held as part of the International Youth Biodiversity Conference in Hyderabad.

He was recognised for developing ‘NeophyteID’, an AI powered mobile application that identifies 100 invasive plant species in Kerala. The application uses the YOLOv11 Machine Learning model for detection. WWF has also provided a seed grant of ₹1.5 lakh for the further development and scaling of the project.

The Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology (MeitY) has constituted the Technology and Policy Expert Committee (TPEC) to serve as an advisory arm to the newly established AI Governance and Economic Group (AIGEG) in New Delhi.

S Krishnan, the Secretary of MeitY, has been appointed as the chairperson of the committee. The TPEC aims to translate complex technological concepts into practical policy insights and strengthen the participation of India in various global forums for AI governance.

Razorpay has partnered with OpenAI to integrate the payment infrastructure of Razorpay into Codex, the coding platform of OpenAI. This collaboration enables developers to build and monetize AI applications using a single natural language prompt.

The Centre for Development of Telematics (C-DOT) has signed an MoU with Jumps Automation LLP under the C-DOT Collaborative Research Programme (CCRP) to develop a gamification platform for cybersecurity awareness.

The initiative aims to enhance the cybersecurity preparedness of individuals and enterprises through an interactive digital environment.

Carlos Alcaraz, the world number one ranked tennis player from Spain, has been appointed as the Global Brand Ambassador of Infosys, a global technology services firm.

The Ministry of Minority Affairs has signed an MoU with the IIT Patna under the PM Virasat Ka Samvardhan (PM VIKAS) scheme. The initiative aims to enhance the employability and placement opportunities of minority youth through modern, technology-driven skilling interventions.

The RBI has unveiled its medium-term strategy framework named “Utkarsh 2029”, which will be implemented from April 2026 to March 2029. The strategy aims to consolidate the position of the RBI as a world-class, full-service central bank by outlining 49 deliverables across six strategic pillars.

The six pillars of the framework include robust regulations, customer centricity and inclusive finance, competitive markets, effective technology, a future-ready organisation, and global integration. The framework introduces “Project Sa-Mudra” to modernise currency management and envisions the expansion of Central Bank Digital Currency (CBDC) for efficient cross-border payments.

The RBI also intends to scale up the Unified Lending Interface (ULI) to enhance credit access for underserved segments of the economy. Additionally, the strategy includes the development of an indigenous AI tool based on a purpose-built Large Language Model (LLM) for internal operations.

According to the “Growth in the New Economy: Towards a Blueprint” report released by the World Economic Forum (WEF), the global economy is projected to expand by $56 trillion over the next 5 years. Asia is set to remain the primary engine of global expansion, contributing more than 50% of the total growth.

Middle-income economies are projected to contribute 65% of the cumulative Gross Domestic Product (GDP) growth between 2025 and 2030. The report further states that low-income economies will account for only about 1% of global growth.

The Broadcast Engineering Consultants India Ltd (BECIL) has signed an MoU with the Centre for Development of Advanced Computing (C-DAC) to collaborate in the fields of advanced technologies, digital transformation, and capacity building. The partnership focuses on joint project implementation, consultancy, and technical support, including the development of solutions in emerging technologies.

SEBI has launched three new Information Technology (IT) platforms: “Single Universal Platform for Communications” (SUPCOMS) 2.1, the “e-adjudication portal”, and “Cyber-Sec Audit Compliance” (C-SAC).

The SUPCOMS 2.1 platform serves as a centralized digital interface that replaces traditional email-based communication for all interactions with external entities. The “e-Adjudication Portal” provides a transparent and paperless platform for quasi-judicial proceedings to increase efficiency and speed. It is to be noted that C-SAC is an AI based platform that enables automated analysis of cyber audit reports to identify compliance gaps and provide risk insights.

Meta Platforms Inc. has launched a new Artificial Intelligence (AI) model titled “Muse Spark”, marking the first release from its superintelligence team under the “Avocado” series.

Initially available on Meta AI platforms, the AI model is scheduled to replace Llama-based chatbots on WhatsApp, Instagram, Facebook, and smart glasses.

Puducherry election authorities have deployed a saree-clad humanoid robot named ‘Nila’ at the VOC Government School polling booth during the Assembly elections.

The initiative aims to create a high-tech and welcoming environment for voters, specifically to attract youth and first-time voters.

Union Minister Jitendra Singh has reviewed the progress and roadmap of the Anusandhan National Research Foundation (ANRF). The ANRF is developing an AI-based platform named ‘SARAL AI’ to convert complex research publications into simplified content across various Indian languages.

The ANRF will launch ‘MAHA’ Leapfrog Demonstrators, a mission mode program designed to deliver the impact of science for societal innovation. It has also deployed Nodal Officers in 250 institutions to facilitate research and promote mission-driven innovation.