Kerala Launches AI Centres of Excellence to Boost Research & Innovation
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Both projects have received administrative approval under the Startup Financing Pillar of the IndiaAI Mission with a total allocation of INR 20 crore each.
The Kerala government has launched two Artificial Intelligence Centres of Excellence (AI-CoEs) in the State in collaboration with the IndiaAI Mission and the India Business Division (IBD) under the Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology (MeitY).
The Centres of Excellence are aimed at advancing AI-driven research and startup development in areas such as biotechnology, genomics, drug discovery, data science, and digital innovation.
The first centre, dedicated to Bio-AI, will be set up by Kerala Startup Mission at the Digital Hub in Kochi, while the second centre will operate under Digital University Kerala in Thiruvananthapuram.
Speaking on the occasion, Kerala Minister for IT and Industries P K Kunhalikutty said, ''Kerala's partnership with the India AI Mission is a landmark moment for the state.”
He added, “With two distinct AI Centres of Excellence, one rooted in Kerala's biological heritage and the other anchored in our world-class digital university, we are building a comprehensive AI ecosystem that covers both frontier research and real-world application. Kerala is not just participating in India's AI mission; we are helping shape it.”
Reportedly, both projects have received administrative approval under the Startup Financing Pillar of the India AI Mission with a total allocation of INR 20 crore each.
The Bio-AI Centre, themed “Nature Meets Compute,” seeks to integrate Kerala’s biodiversity, traditional Ayurvedic knowledge, and genomics research with AI technologies.
In addition, the initiative will leverage the ‘Tejaswi’ supercomputer at Cochin University of Science and Technology and the Kerala Genome Data Centre for research and computational support.
The project will be implemented with an INR 20 crore investment spread over four years under a 40:40:20 funding model involving MeitY, the State government, and an industry consortium consisting of Synthite Industries, Plant Lipids, Mane Kancor, and Vaidyaratnam Oushadhasala.
As a part of the roadmap, the Bio AI CoE is expected to incubate 48 deep-tech startups through four annual cohorts, build 600 high-value jobs, and train 1,200 professionals in bioinformatics.
It also aims to develop 20 proprietary intellectual property assets in areas including drug discovery, agri-tech, and genomics.
The AI-CoE at Digital University Kerala will operate from a dedicated 10,000 sq. ft. facility in Thiruvananthapuram.
The centre will focus on applied AI research, startup incubation, mentorship programmes, hackathons, workshops, accelerator support, industry collaboration, and commercialisation of AI-driven solutions across multiple sectors.
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