India's Path to AI Geo-Governance: A Third Way

• India faces a critical choice in AI governance, seeking to avoid both China's centralized, state-led control and the US's fragmented, market-driven model.
• The Global South currently lacks the capacity to shape global AI standards, risking becoming passive "norm-takers."
• India is uniquely positioned to advocate for a "third way" of regulated openness, leveraging its Digital Public Infrastructure (DPI) to prioritize public goods and inclusive growth.

Global Regulatory Approaches

• China: Employs a state-led, preventive approach characterized by algorithmic registration, mandatory pre-deployment scrutiny, and clear liability for state-aligned objectives.
• US: Relies on a market-driven, "regulate-later" approach with fragmented state-level policies, prioritizing innovation but risking platform monopolization and weak accountability.
• European Union: Utilizes a risk-based framework (EU AI Act) that imposes strict obligations on high-risk applications while maintaining democratic oversight.

Limitations of India’s Current Framework

• Existing legislation, such as the IT Act (2000) and DPDP Act (2023), focuses narrowly on data privacy and intermediary liability.
• These laws fail to address foundational generative AI risks, including model safety, algorithmic bias, lack of explainability, and the economic impact of autonomous systems.

Proposed Strategic Direction for India

• Risk-Tiered Regulation: Adopt an EU-style framework where strict ex-ante rules apply to high-risk domains like elections, biometric surveillance, and welfare allocation, while allowing experimentation in low-risk areas.
• Focus on Transparency: Prioritize public explainability and accountability rather than restrictive content control to foster innovation.
• DPI Leverage: Utilize India’s "India Stack" (e.g., Aadhaar, UPI) as a scaled testbed to demonstrate how AI can serve developmental needs, positioning India as a leader for the Global South.
• Active Engagement: Participate in international forums like WAICO to influence global standards, avoiding both isolation and uncritical alignment with existing power blocs.