Google building AI model to support over 100 Indian languages: Sundar Pichai

New Delhi

Google, the world’s most popular search engine, is working on making text and voice internet search available in over 100 Indian langugages, its India-born CEO Sundar Pichai said on Monday.

Mr. Pichai, who is visiting India, said the pace of technological change in the country had been extraordinary and Google was supporting small businesses and start-ups, investing in cybersecurity, providing education and skills training, and applying AI (Artificial Intelligence) in sectors like agriculture and healthcare.

“I’m here to see progress being made from our $10 billion, 10-year India Digitization Fund (IDF), and share new ways. We’re helping to advance India’s digital future at our Google for India event.

“That includes our efforts to build a single, unified AI model that will be capable of handling over 100 Indian languages across speech and text – part of our global effort to bring the world’s 1,000 most-spoken languages online, and to help people access knowledge and information in their preferred language,” he wrote in a blog.

In July 2020, Google had announced plans to invest $10 billion in India over next five to seven years as the search giant looks to help accelerate adoption of digital services in the key overseas market.

“We’re also supporting a new, multidisciplinary centre for responsible AI with IIT Madras,” Mr. Pichai said.