Forget chatbots, lace up for robot race

Time of India

3 hours ago

Future of the factory floor is smart, built on AI and robots tailored to the specific needs of each environment. With its semiconductor and AI ecosystems rising apace, India has a real chance to take the lead.
After 78 years of Independence, India stands at the threshold of a technological revolution that could define her next century. The world is racing toward Physical AI: robots that think, factories that learn, supply chains that adapt in real time. Countries that master this technology won't just export products, they'll export the future itself. And if we don't build it, someone else will build it for us. Fortunately, India has everything it takes to win this race. The only question is: will we move fast enough?
I'm not exaggerating. Last month, UPI powered 1,947cr transactions worth Rs 25L cr. When India decides to build something fundamental, we don't copy – we leapfrog. Now it's time to do the same with physical technology.
The foundation is already being laid. The IndiaAI mission is building a national computer grid with thousands of GPUs that any startup can rent by the hour. A Coimbatore firm accessing Silicon Valley-level computational power? That's disruption. In Dholera, Tata Electronics is constructing India's first major semiconductor fab. Chips aren't just components – they're sovereignty in silicon.
BSNL's signed up for India's first industrial-grade private 5G network at Numaligarh Refinery. This is the nervous system of smart factories: machines communicating in milliseconds, robot arms coordinating with quality scanners – zero human intervention.
For years, global tech giants have treated India as their data farm. A billion Indians generating clicks, swipes, voices, images – all harvested and processed in Silicon Valley, then sold back as 'AI services'. We've become the world's largest unpaid data labourers. Digital colonialism, plain and simple.
Physical AI is our chance to break this cycle. India's data should train India's robots. Our factory floors generate uniquely Indian patterns: different power grids, humidity levels, worker rhythms. A robot built in China can't withstand an Indian summer. An AI trained in pristine Western factories can't handle the controlled chaos of an Indian warehouse. When we build Physical AI systems trained on Indian data, solving Indian problems, we assert digital sovereignty.
Before worrying about job losses, consider Tamil Nadu's electronics corridor: heavily automated, yet creating thousands of jobs.
Automation doesn't eliminate work – it transforms it. Productive factories win more orders, expand operations, and create new roles: robot operators, AI trainers, quality analysts, maintenance specialists.
So, what's the game plan? First, we need our own 'RoboStack': open standards for Indian robotics that any entrepreneur can build on. Think UPI for machines. The govt must extend PLI incentives beyond assembly to the unglamorous essentials: motors, sensors, gearboxes. Roll out industrial 5G in every manufacturing cluster, not just showpiece refineries. And enable Robot-as-a-Service financing: small manufacturers shouldn't need crores upfront – they should pay from productivity gains.
But policy alone won't cut it. Our startups need to stop chasing the next 10-minute delivery app and start building the picks and shovels of Physical AI. Every imported sensor, servo motor, gripper is a missed opportunity. Build one critical component exceptionally well, and global supply chains will come knocking. The market doesn't need another chatbot – it needs depth cameras that work in Indian factory conditions.
Our industrial giants, sitting in massive factories, have adifferent role. Those production lines generate invaluable data every second. Use it to train Indian AI systems. Be the first customers for Indian robotics startups. Your early adoption gives them credibility to go global.
And for our youth: forget the obsession with becoming the next software unicorn. The real opportunity is in the real world. ITIs and polytechnics should run 12-week certifications for robot operators and automation technicians. If you're in an engineering college, go build a robot – not another app. The highest-paying jobs of the next decade won't all require computer science degrees – they'll need people who bridge the digital and physical worlds.
Most importantly, mandate data localisation for industrial AI. Every robot operating in India, every factory AI system, should contribute to a national industrial data commons. Not to spy on companies, but to build collective intelligence that benefits all Indian manufacturers. When a textile mill in Surat solves a quality problem, that learning should help a mill in Tirupur. When a pharma plant in Hyderabad optimises a process, that insight should benefit facilities in Baddi.
Here's my prediction: by Independence Day 2030, we won't be discussing why India missed the AI revolution. We'll be counting how many factories run on indigenous technology, how many young Indians operate advanced robots, how many lakhs of crores we've saved in imports, and how many global companies are buying Indian-made automation systems.
This isn't about any one company or govt scheme. It's about a choice we make as a nation. Do we want to remain consumers of someone else's future, or creators of our own? Freedom fighters gave us political independence in 1947. Engineers, entrepreneurs and workers of 2025 must secure our technological independence.
The race has begun. The infra is building. The world is watching.
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Views expressed above are the author's own.