AI Summit: Vishal Sikka envisions AI-led ‘human revolution’ for a billion Indian entrepreneurs

Day four of the AI Impact Summit listed a number of big-ticket speakers on which also featured former Infosys CEO and current Vianai founder Vishal Sikka. In his speech, Sikka said India has the potential to spearhead a new human revolution driven by purposeful and responsible artificial intelligence that enables “a billion entrepreneurs” not only to earn livelihoods but to build meaningful lives.

The former Infosys chief described AI as a once-in-a-generation opportunity that could reshape productivity, decision-making and enterprise systems, much like India’s past transformations in connectivity and food security.

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"To build the next generation of it (AI)... We can be on our way to a human revolution. Powered by AI, good AI, purposeful AI-- where every one of us-- a billion entrepreneurs-- is not just making a living, but is making a life -- not some artificial life or some artificial general life, but our own life and the life of others, and that would be so much fun to do," he said while addressing the audience on Thursday.

Bridging the gap between AI models and real-world use

Sikka pointed to striking examples of AI-led productivity gains, including a Stanford colleague who rebuilt a major service in 14 days using generative AI — work that had previously taken 15 engineers nine months. In another case, a business leader was able to make a strategic decision in days rather than a year.

However, he cautioned that AI’s effectiveness depends heavily on how well users understand both its strengths and its limitations.

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A significant disconnect still exists between large language models (LLMs) and enterprise needs, he noted, and bridging this gap will require reliable, verifiable systems that deliver real business value.

"Being effective with AI requires not only knowledge of AI itself but also understanding its limitations and how to overcome those limitations. There is a huge gap between LLMs and the business users inside enterprises, and overcoming that gap is where a lot of value-creating opportunity is. Bridging that gap requires delivering correct, trusted, verifiable, and reliable systems that deliver value to people," Sikka added.

Overcoming these barriers could unlock sweeping change - from modernising legacy systems to simplifying complex industrial processes. With responsible implementation and forward-looking innovation, Sikka said, India is uniquely positioned to harness AI to transform industries while empowering individuals.

He also stressed the need to move beyond simply adopting current AI systems and work towards making them safer, more efficient and more grounded in real-world understanding, noting that responsible development will be critical as the technology continues to evolve.