Indians shine in AI research, but prefer to work in US

Indians shine in AI research, but prefer to work in US

TIMES NEWS NETWORK

New Delhi:11.06.2020

India is the source country for 12% of the most elite –the top 0.5%– of researchers in artificial intelligence, a new study has found. But these top brains prefer to work in the US rather than India. In a global AI tracker launched by MacroPolo, a think tank devoted to the study of China, they found Indian undergraduate education throws up the most number of top level AI researchers (after the USA) but almost all travel out to the US for graduate education and work.

The data is significant as the Modi government has declared greater emphasis on Industry 4.0, AI, robotics and machine learning as focus areas. Clearly, systemic issues need to be fixed before India can marry the twin objectives of harnessing tech brainpower and building local in the key industry or top level knowledge institutions. The world’s top 25 institutions for AI research are overwhelmingly in the US, with China contributing its top two institutions, Tsinghua and Peking Universities. There are no Indian institutions in the list.

The key takeaways from the study show that the US continues to maintain a huge lead over all other countries in top-tier AI researchers. China remains the largest source of AI researchers, but this may be in jeopardy as the Trump administration has announced plans to curb access of Chinese STEM students to top US universities. The study noted that over half of all top-tier AI researchers are immigrants or foreign nationals, researchers working in a country different from where they received their undergraduate degree. China makes up 27% of foreign AI researchers in the US, while Indians make up 11%.