Jay Parikh, executive vice president of Microsoft's CoreAI group, has stated that the next stage of the artificial intelligence race will not depend solely on who creates the most powerful AI models, but on who can successfully deploy them at scale with trust and real-world impact. In a blog post discussing India's growing AI ecosystem, the Microsoft executive highlighted the country's developer community, enterprise adoption, and digital infrastructure as key strengths shaping the future of AI.
India's Unique Position in AI
Parikh noted that India is "uniquely positioned" in the AI era because of its combination of developer talent, enterprise AI adoption, and digital public infrastructure. "The next phase of AI won't be defined by who builds the best models, but by who can deploy them at scale with trust, speed, and real-world impact," he wrote.
Developer Community and Open Source Contributions
According to Parikh, India is now home to GitHub's largest developer community, with more than 27 million developers and over 2 million new users joining the platform in 2026 alone. He also emphasized that Indian developers are the second-largest contributors to open-source projects globally, including AI-focused initiatives.
Indian Companies Leading AI Innovation
Parikh pointed to companies such as Sarvam AI, Krutrim, and Qure.ai as examples of Indian firms building AI products for global markets. These companies are developing innovative solutions that have the potential to impact industries worldwide.
Digital Public Infrastructure as a Foundation
The Microsoft executive also highlighted India's digital public infrastructure, particularly the Unified Payments Interface (UPI), which now processes more than 20 billion transactions per month. Parikh added that India is moving toward what "could become the world's first large-scale AI public infrastructure," where AI systems may become integrated into services including healthcare, education, and financial systems.
Enterprise AI Adoption Accelerating
He also cited reports showing that Indian enterprises are adopting AI faster than many global peers, with several companies already moving AI tools from testing stages into live production environments. This rapid adoption underscores India's potential to become a global hub for AI innovation and implementation.
