India has no shortage of artificial intelligence talent, but it still lacks sufficient experience in building frontier AI models from scratch, according to Sarvam AI, the startup that recently attained unicorn status following a strategic investment from HCLTech.
Speaking to NDTV Profit, Sarvam AI's co-founder Dr. Pratyush Kumar, said India possesses immense technical talent and strong academic capabilities, but the country is still developing the expertise needed to create cutting-edge foundation models at a global scale.
"India has immense talent, but lacks experience," Kumar said, stressing the need for greater investment in research and development to build sovereign AI capabilities.
The comments come shortly after HCLTech announced a Rs 1,427 crore ($150 million) strategic investment in Sarvam AI, acquiring a 10.46% stake in the company. The investment anchors the first close of Sarvam AI's Series B funding round, which has raised $234 million so far against a target of $300 million, valuing the company at $1.5 billion post-money.
The startup, which focuses on developing AI models tailored for Indian languages and use cases, believes sovereign AI has become a strategic necessity.
"India cannot not have a game in sovereign AI," the co-founder said, arguing that domestic capabilities in artificial intelligence will be critical as countries seek greater technological independence.
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Sarvam AI said it has evolved significantly over the past few years and now possesses the R&D capabilities required to build AI models from the ground up. The company acknowledged that it previously lacked the research infrastructure necessary for developing foundational models but has since strengthened its technology and research teams.
The fresh capital from HCLTech is expected to play a key role in accelerating those ambitions.
According to the company, building frontier AI systems requires substantial financial resources, as investments are needed not only for talent but also for computing infrastructure and model development. "AI needs a lot of capital," the co-founder said, adding that funding enables access to greater compute capacity and supports the development of more advanced models.
Sarvam AI said the partnership with HCLTech will help address critical gaps by providing both capital and enterprise-scale opportunities. The company believes the collaboration will strengthen its ability to develop larger AI models and expand sovereign AI solutions built in India.
The startup is also preparing an aggressive product rollout. It plans to launch its agentic AI stack next month and will soon release a dedicated voice AI stack. The company said both product categories are already witnessing strong sales momentum, while document AI solutions are showing early signs of growth.
Sarvam AI's voice AI platform is already available at scale, and the company intends to make its full agentic AI stack accessible to enterprises. It is also working on specialised models for coding and cybersecurity applications.
The company said its long-term focus remains on core AI technology and research. Positioning itself as an R&D-driven organisation, Sarvam AI aims to develop custom models for enterprise and government applications while contributing to India's broader sovereign AI ambitions.
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