OpenAI Academy launched in India in partnership with IndiaAI Mission to boost skill development

OpenAI, in collaboration with the IndiaAI Mission under the Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology, has announced the launch of OpenAI Academy India, marking the company’s first international expansion of its educational platform.

The new initiative aims to broaden access to artificial intelligence (AI) skills training across India, leveraging the country’s growing developer ecosystem, digital infrastructure, and startup community. The announcement also included the signing of a memorandum of understanding (MoU) between OpenAI and the IndiaAI Mission, outlining their shared objectives.

OpenAI Academy India is set to contribute to the IndiaAI Mission’s FutureSkills initiative by offering AI education to diverse groups, including students, educators, civil servants, non-profit leaders, developers, and small business owners. The programme will combine online and offline learning, with content provided in both English and Hindi initially, and support for additional regional languages to follow.

Under the MoU, OpenAI has committed to several initiatives:

• Sharing its digital skilling content through the Future Skills platform.
• Supporting government capacity building by hosting learning resources on the iGOT Karmayogi platform, with multilingual accessibility planned.
• Conducting webinars and workshops across six Indian cities.
• Providing up to $100,000 worth of API credits to 50 startups or fellows approved by the IndiaAI Mission.
• Organising hackathons in seven states, targeting a reach of approximately 25,000 students.
• Offering winners of these hackathons an opportunity to attend an OpenAI Dev Day event abroad.
• Supporting the training of one million teachers in the use of generative AI tools.

Union Minister for Electronics & Information Technology, Shri Ashwini Vaishnaw, welcomed the launch, describing it as a step towards democratising access to knowledge and technology. “Under the visionary leadership of Prime Minister Narendra Modi, India is committed to ensuring that the benefits of cutting-edge innovation reach every citizen,” he said.

OpenAI’s Chief Strategy Officer, Jason Kwon, also highlighted India’s rapid pace of AI adoption and innovation. “We’re proud to partner with IndiaAI to launch OpenAI Academy India and help more people gain the confidence and skills to use AI meaningfully in their work, communities, and lives,” he said.

The OpenAI Academy platform offers a combination of video tutorials, interactive modules, expert-led workshops, and peer-based learning to enable broader understanding and practical use of AI technologies.

The launch is intended to serve as a key milestone in OpenAI’s global education initiative, supporting the belief that greater access to AI learning can foster innovation and inclusive progress.