The Department of Science and Technology, under the Government of India and Intel India, have partnered to launch a program to promote AI readiness in the country. Titled ‘Building AI Readiness Among Young Innovators,’ the initiative was launched to mark National Science Day on February 28 by Dr Jitendra Singh, the Union Minister of State for Science and Technology. The program is aimed at school students from Class 6th to 10th who have enrolled for it under DST’s INSPIRE-Awards MANAK scheme. 

“Scientists must be classified in three categories as per age – the first one being children below 15 years. Every day, we come across incredible innovations by young minds. We must catch them young and provide them mentorship and opportunities to experiment and explore,” Dr Singh said at the event. 

The program will be completed in three separate phases. In the first phase, students will be a part of virtual orientation sessions, after which the students will submit their ideas for AI solutions. Of these, 200 will be selected who will enter the second phase. The selected students will then attend an Intel AI boot camp with AI experts and coaches. The students will work on individual projects in these workshops, after which 50 will be shortlisted by a panel for the third phase. The final 50 projects will be showcased on a public platform. 
“We are collaborating with governments globally to build a digital-first mindset and expand access to the AI skills needed for current and future jobs. We look forward to our collaboration with the Department of Science and Technology in scaling India’s digital readiness,” Shweta Khurana, director of the APJ region at the Government Partnerships & Initiatives, Global Government Affairs at Intel, said.