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Context: Defence Minister will inaugurate the first ever ‘Artificial Intelligence in Defence’ (AIDef) zsymposium and exhibition, organised by Department of Defence Production, Ministry of Defence, in New Delhi

More on the news:

• 75 newly-developed AI products/technologies, having applications in defence, will be launched, as part of the celebrations marking 75 years of Independence ‘Azadi Ka Amrit Mahotsav’ and to promote ‘Aatmanirbharta’ initiative in Defence.
• The products are in the domains of automation/unmanned/robotics systems, cyber security, human behaviour analysis, intelligent monitoring system, logistics and supply chain management, speech/voice analysis and Command, Control, Communication, Computer & Intelligence, Surveillance & Reconnaissance (C4ISR) systems and Operational Data Analytics.
• Besides the 75 products being launched, another 100 are in various stages of development.
• Two top defence exporters one each from public & private sector will be felicitated during the event. Defence exports have crossed the highest ever figure of Rs 13,000 crore in Financial Year 2021-22, with 70% contribution coming from the private sector and the remaining 30% from the public sector
• The event will also witness panel discussions on ‘Deploying AI in Defence’, ‘GenNext AI solutions’ and ‘AI in Defence – Industry Perspective’, with active participation from the Services, academia, students, research organisations and Industry.
• A ‘GenNext AI’ Solutions Competition has been organised to get bright innovative ideas from students on futuristic AI solutions.

Background:

• AI task force on Defence was established in 2018 to provide a road map on promoting AI in defence. Acting on its recommendations, a Defence AI Council, headed by Raksha Mantri, is spearheading the effort.
• Defenceestablishment, ranging from the Army, Navy and IAF to DRDO labs, is increasingly focusing on AI to enable faster decision-making and shortening the sensor-to shooter loop, AI-powered surveillance and weapon systems.
• The Indian defence establishment now has a Defence Artificial Intelligence Council (DAIC) led by the defence minister to provide overall guidance and support.
• Defence minister  had earlier declared that “25 defence-specific AI products” will be developed by 2024.
• A Defence AI Project Agency (DAIPA) has also been created under the secretary (defence production), with Rs 100 crore earmarked annually for AI-enabled projects.
• Individual services are also cranking up their own efforts. The Navy, for instance, has 30 ongoing AI projects encompassing autonomous systems, maritime domain awareness, perimeter security, decision-making, predictive inventory maintenance and management.
• Apart from setting up an “AI core group”, the Navy is also creating an AI centre of excellence at INS Valsura in Jamnagar, which already has a modern lab on AI and Big Data analysis.
• The Army, too, has several schemes underway on contemporary and emerging AI technologies. Apart from civil industry partnerships, an AI centre of excellence has been established at the Military College for Telecommunication Engineeringin Mhow.
• Application-oriented research in AI is also being conducted at two dedicated DRDO labs, Centre for Artificial Intelligence and Robotics (CAIR) and DRDO Young Scientist Laboratory(DYSL)-AI, both at Bengaluru.
• Moreover, all DRDO system labs have started AI technology groups to introduce AI features in all products.
  In January 2019, Centre for Artificial Intelligence and Robotics (CAIR), a DRDO laboratory, initiated a project to develop AI-based solutions for signal intelligence which will help to enhance intelligence, collation and analysis capabilities for the armed forces. The AI-based tools used in the development of the project will help the defence forces constructively in areas such as decision support, sensor data analysis, predictive maintenance, situational awareness, accurate data extraction, and security.

https://www.pib.gov.in/PressReleasePage.aspx?PRID=1840142

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