AI needs to be open and inclusive like India Stack

BUILT WITH PUBLIC MONEY, INDIA'S DIGITAL SYSTEMS SERVES EVERYONE

- Charles Assisi

Back in October 2024, I wrote on these pages of a group of 12-year-olds who had figured out an ingenious shortcut to finish their homework. Use 40% ChatGPT, 40% Google, and 20% of their own words. At first, it looked like cheating. But with the perspective of distance, I think it was something else entirely.

These children had understood a basic truth: in today's world, what matters most is the result. Not the process. Not the effort. Ask the right question and let the machine find the answer. Don't worry too much about what happens in between. This way of thinking isn't limited to schoolwork anymore; it's showing up in the way digital systems are being built worldwide—India included.

Over the last few years, India has quietly built one of the most impressive pieces of technology. Between Aadhaar, UPI, DigiLocker, CoWIN, Bhashini, and ONDC—collectively called IndiaStack—it is now used by millions of people. It helps people prove their identity, send money, download documents, get vaccinated, translate languages, and access other public services. But here's what makes India's system different from those in most other countries: it doesn't keep your data.