OpenAI unveils learning accelerator, India-first initiative; partners with IIT Madras, others

New Delhi: OpenAI on Monday introduced an India-first initiative that aims to empower educators with AI tools and training, as it announced a new research collaboration with IIT Madras, backed by $500,000 in funding from the ChatGPT-maker.

The push on education comes at a time when the company is gearing up to open its first India office in New Delhi later this year. High-profile founder Sam Altman, too, is scheduled to visit the country next month.

Through the pact announced on Monday, IIT Madras will conduct long-term studies on how AI can improve learning outcomes, innovate teaching methods, aligned to insights from cognitive neuroscience. Findings will be shared openly and inform future product development.

Notably, India also has the largest population of students on ChatGPT worldwide.

To cement its commitment to education opportunities through AI in India and across the Asia Pacific, OpenAI has appointed Raghav Gupta as Head of Education for India and Asia Pacific. Gupta brings over two decades of experience in education and consumer technology, most recently as Managing Director for India and Asia Pacific at Coursera.

Gupta will lead OpenAI’s work to drive education with AI and make OpenAI’s tools more accessible to educators, students, and education researchers across India.

Over the next six months, OpenAI plans to distribute about half a million ChatGPT licenses and training to educators and students across India through partnerships with the Ministry of Education (MoE), All India Council for Technical Education (AICTE), and ARISE member schools, the company said.

OpenAI Learning Accelerator, the India-first initiative under the AI Impact Summit, is in line with the company's efforts to drive research, access, and training on AI in education across India.

This platform aims to bring advanced AI to India’s educators and millions of learners nationwide through AI research, training, and deployment, the company said.

Among the partnerships announced on Monday is a new research collaboration with IIT Madras and OpenAI, backed by USD 500,000 in funding from OpenAI.

On teaming up with Ministry of Education (MoE), OpenAI said it is committing to provide ChatGPT access for teachers in government schools (Classes 1-12), supporting lesson planning, student engagement, and improved outcomes, while the AICTE pact is about providing ChatGPT access to technical institutes nationwide, strengthening digital skills, employability, and practical AI use.

Each partner will work with OpenAI to design and distribute training programmes that build AI literacy and confidence among educators and students, ensuring the technology is used effectively and responsibly, OpenAI said, adding that the tie-up with ARISE member schools will involve providing ChatGPT access for K-12 educators, enabling more personalised and responsive teaching.

AI has incredible potential to empower educators and learners. To realise that potential, we must work side by side with educators and institutions, Leah Belsky, VP of Education at OpenAI, said.

"This effort is critical to OpenAI’s mission of ensuring AGI benefits humanity, and as such, the launch of OpenAI Learning Accelerator alongside our partners represents one of OpenAI’s most significant investments in India’s education ecosystem to date," Belsky said.

Over the past weeks and months, OpenAI has lined up a string of initiatives developed for the Indian market, including ChatGPT Go, OpenAI Academy, and enhanced Indic language support, among others.

Only a few days ago, it announced ChatGPT Go, its new subscription plan priced at Rs 399 a month that packs in increased message limits, image generation and file uploads for users in India. The company also announced that all ChatGPT subscriptions can be paid through UPI, a move that will make it easier for users across India to access OpenAI's advanced AI tools.