Priyank Kharge

Priyank Kharge, Karnataka's Minister for Home, IT and Biotechnology, and E-Governance, has underscored the state's consistent leadership in India's innovation economy. Under his stewardship, Karnataka recorded IT exports exceeding ₹4.5 lakh crore in 2024–25, with 47 of the country's approximately 110 unicorns based in the state. 

Kharge has maintained that while others may compete on subsidies, Karnataka competes on capability.

Under his leadership, the state is transitioning towards intelligent governance powered by AI, a shift he describes as 'i-governance'. Several AI-led initiatives are already being piloted, including a semi-autonomous chatbot with agentic capabilities for grievance management, AI to detect manipulated images in crop loss assessments, and AI for livestock census using nose-print recognition.

Kharge has emphasised that governance must now be data-driven and responsive. In line with this vision, the Karnataka government has proposed establishing a Centre for Applied AI for Tech Solutions with ₹20 crore in funding, and is also finalising a new AI-focused IT policy that introduces AI-powered tools for governance.

The Minister was an active participant at the 2026 India AI Impact Summit and welcomed Anthropic's decision to establish operations in Bengaluru, strengthening Karnataka's position within the global AI ecosystem.