The future is now: Exploring Generative AI’s role in India’s public sector innovation

India's public sector is undergoing a seismic shift. Generative AI (Gen AI) is emerging as a powerful tool to address long-standing challenges and create innovative solutions. And does it have the power to revolutionise governance, enhance education and improve healthcare? The answer is a resounding yes.

The Bharat Innovators Series, hosted by AWS in collaboration with AMD and YourStory, offers a deep dive into the transformative impact of Generative AI (Gen AI) across India's public sector. This three-part series explores how Gen AI is shaping governance, education, healthcare, and other critical areas, highlighting its role in driving innovation and enhancing citizen services.

Setting the stage for Gen AI in the public sector

The first episode, titled "The dawn of a new era: Understanding Gen AI and its potential for the public sector," kicked off with an insightful conversation led by AWS leaders Sunil PP, Kanishka Agiwal, and Durga Prasad Kakaraparthi. Together, they explored the evolution of AI and its growing impact on various sectors.

"Gen AI is everywhere," remarked Sunil PP,India & South Asia Lead - Public Sector Channels & Alliances, AWS. “From small organisations to large enterprises, we’re seeing huge interest in Gen AI’s potential to scale and move to the next level. It’s an exciting time to have these conversations.”

The episode began by exploring the evolution of AI and its real-world applications. Kanishka Agiwal, Head of Service Lines for India & South Asia at AWS, reflected on the journey: “ML has been around for decades, but the commercialisation started around 2013-2014. Now, with Gen AI, we’re seeing use cases that are not just ‘tick-the-box’ projects but initiatives directly impacting bottom lines, bringing efficiencies, and driving automation.”

He added: “These are projects that are becoming real and tangible, moving beyond vanity ML initiatives to solving practical problems like cost optimisation, better automation, and productivity.”

Revolutionising governance with Gen AI

One of the standout examples discussed was the Government e-Marketplace (GeM), a procurement platform that serves millions of buyers and sellers. Durga Prasad Kakaraparthi, Head of Solutions Architecture, Public Sector, AWS, shared how Gen AI transformed the platform: “GeM wanted to engage more buyers and sellers in the fastest possible way. Using AWS services and Amazon Bedrock, it moved from idea to production in just a few months. Its AI model now offers personalised recommendations and enhanced conversational interfaces, making procurement more interactive and efficient.”

Kanishka elaborated on the impact of such innovations: “The AI model elevated the entire conversation, enabling buyers and sellers to get personalised recommendations and instantly find information they would have otherwise spent hours sifting through.”

The speakers also touched on how conversational AI is streamlining user experiences in various sectors, from travel ticketing to education. Kanishka illustrated this with an example: “Think about how frustrating it can be to find information on fare rules or cancellation penalties while booking travel. With conversational AI, users can get instant answers and make decisions quickly, reducing frustration and improving satisfaction.”

Durgaprasad added: “The time saved by using Gen AI can be redirected to focus on other priorities. This productivity boost benefits both individuals and organisations, especially startups looking to create B2C solutions.”

Unlocking new opportunities

Highlighting the role of Gen AI in startups, the speakers shared inspiring examples like Bri Books, a platform empowering young authors. Kanishka explained: “Bri Books introduced a conversational AI called BriBoo, which helps young writers overcome creative blocks by analysing what they’ve written and suggesting the next steps. It’s a fantastic example of how Gen AI can create meaningful solutions.”

Sunil highlighted another fascinating use case: a question paper generation tool powered by AI, developed in collaboration with Digi. “We actually thought it may not work, but they went and built it,” Sunil shared. The tool generates adaptive question papers, automatically adjusting complexity based on a student’s proficiency. Already implemented in six universities, it reduces the workload of faculty while maintaining high levels of accuracy—reported at 92%. Institutions like VIT and Manipal have signed up to test this innovation.

Gen AI in healthcare and government

One of the key areas where GenAI is making a significant impact is healthcare. AI-assisted diagnostics are proving invaluable, particularly in reducing errors caused by human fatigue. Kanishka illustrated this with a hypothetical scenario: “A radiologist in a large hospital might review 300–400 scans a day. AI can assist in identifying anomalies, minimising the risk of human error in critical cases.”

Sunil also highlighted the widespread adoption of AI in the healthcare industry, noting that "Nine out of ten pharmaceutical companies worldwide use AWS GenAI today." This widespread adoption points to the significant potential of GenAI in driving efficiencies and improving outcomes in sectors like healthcare.

According to Durgaprasad, AI is improving operational efficiency, particularly in the government sector. He pointed out that AI is increasingly being used to streamline state-sponsored insurance claims.

"When the number of claims increases, it becomes difficult to manually process each one, leading to errors and fraudulent transactions. Leveraging AI reduces inaccuracies and speeds up the process. Some governments are already using it to great effect," he explained.

Gen AI and startups: Unlocking new opportunities

For startups, the adoption of GenAI presents both opportunities and challenges. Durgaprasad emphasised the importance of being strategic in implementing this technology: "Identify the problem you're trying to solve. GenAI isn’t the answer to everything, but it excels in areas like improving productivity, aiding decision-making, and enhancing customer experiences. The key is ensuring your data is ready—without structured or unstructured data, GenAI won’t deliver its full potential."

Cost efficiency also emerged as a crucial consideration. Durgaprasad highlighted the importance of scaling responsibly: "Frugal architecture is critical. You may have a fantastic product, but if it's not commercially viable, it won’t succeed. Balancing cost, accuracy, and scalability is a challenge that startups must navigate to ensure sustainable growth."

Tackling hallucination in AI models

One of the challenges discussed was "hallucination," where AI generates fictitious or incorrect data. Kanishka explained: “Hallucination is when the model provides fictitious answers that weren’t part of its training data. While sometimes these responses are harmless, they can occasionally be distressing, obnoxious, or factually incorrect.”

Guardrails and safety measures are essential to mitigate these risks. “The focus now is on ensuring that while models have the freedom to explore datasets and provide insights, they don’t veer into inappropriate or inaccurate territory,” he added.

Looking ahead: The future of Gen AI

The rapid rise of GenAI was another focal point of the discussion. Durgaprasad shared a striking comparison to underscore the pace at which GenAI is being embraced: "It took Uber five years to get 100 million users, TikTok nine months, and ChatGPT just two months. That shows the transformative power of GenAI, which is no longer limited to technologists but has become accessible to everyone."

As GenAI continues to evolve, businesses must adapt their strategies to stay ahead. Durgaprasad concluded with a forward-looking statement, encouraging organisations to explore the full potential of GenAI: "Every department, organisation, and partner should explore how Gen AI can solve their unique problems while keeping cost, scalability, and performance in mind."

From streamlining government claims to building cost-effective solutions for startups, Gen AI is reshaping how industries approach innovation. However, as the panellists emphasised, the key to success lies in aligning the technology with specific business needs and constraints. With the right approach, Gen AI has the potential to revolutionise entire sectors and empower organisations to achieve new heights of efficiency and growth.