Budget 2026: Tech industry pushes for AI ecosystem, digital infrastructure, and liquidity
As Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman readies the Union Budget for February 1, India's tech community has a clear ask: invest in an AI ecosystem, expand digital infrastructure, and ensure market liquidity so adoption isn't starved of capital. The Economic Survey (Jan 29) treats AI as an economic strategy, not a prestige race-calling for open, interoperable systems and sector-specific execution.
That thinking matches how Indian builders already ship. CP Gurnani pointed to India's talent, diverse data, and a pragmatic shift to smaller, domain-specific models. "Create affordable, human-centric AI that solves local challenges first, then scales globally," he said.
AI, but built bottom-up
The Survey's stance is simple: pick sectors, standardize data flows, and drive shared innovation on open rails. For engineering teams, that means prioritizing interoperability, reusable components, and measurable outcomes over headline models.
For a deeper policy context, see the Economic Survey on the official Budget portal: indiabudget.gov.in/economicsurvey.
Logistics: autonomy, planning, and interoperable workflows
FarEye expects the Budget to boost reliability and global competitiveness by backing autonomous logistics orchestration. "Incentives for applied AI, advanced planning systems, and interoperable digital workflows will be essential to unlocking productivity gains across multimodal networks," said Suryansh Jalan, CBO at FarEye.
With logistics projected to add nearly 10 million jobs by 2027, Jalan argues for a shift to job productivity and tech readiness-skilling for digital operations, control-tower management, and AI-assisted planning. He also cited the latest DPIIT-NCAER update that pegs logistics costs at 7.97% of GDP, indicating progress from policy, infrastructure, and digital enablement.
From digital-first to intelligence-first infrastructure
GlobalLogic frames the moment as scaling intelligence into the physical world-bringing AI, data platforms, and digital public infrastructure into operational loops. "The progress made in AI, data platforms, and digital public infrastructure has laid a strong foundation; the next opportunity lies in scaling this intelligence into the physical world," said Piyush Jha, VP and Head for Asia Pacific.
Content, publishing, and retail productivity
Lumina Datamatic expects the Budget to strengthen digital and AI-led infrastructure across knowledge services and commerce. Continued investment in AI, automation, and cloud can lift throughput for content creation, publishing workflows, and high-volume retail operations.
Semiconductors: continuity, certainty, and speed
Chipmakers want execution certainty as large programs move from approvals to the ground. IESA President Ashok Chandak highlighted momentum via ISM-led Semicon India, DLI, PLI, and the Electronics Component Manufacturing Scheme-while calling for ISM 2.0 continuity, higher FY27 allocations for approved projects, and a simplified, time-bound pari-passu disbursement process.
His core point: these are capital-intensive, long-gestation bets. Tax certainty and predictable execution matter as much as incentives.
Telecom: reward R&D in 6G, AI, and defence tech
HFCL sees a window to convert India's telecom build-out into lasting tech leadership. Managing Director Mahendra Nahata urged a targeted Innovation-Linked Incentive (ILI) that directly rewards R&D spend and patent generation across 6G, AI, and defence technologies.
What IT and engineering teams should watch in the Budget
- AI adoption incentives: tax credits for applied AI builds, accelerated depreciation for compute, and support for domain-specific models.
- Open infrastructure: funding for shared datasets, open standards, and interoperability that lowers integration overhead across sectors.
- Liquidity: credit lines or blended finance that make AI pilots and scale-ups feasible for SMBs and mid-market enterprises.
- Semiconductors: continuation of DLI/PLI with faster disbursements; support for design, ATMP/OSAT, and supply-chain localization.
- Telecom: ILI for 6G and AI, plus incentives for domestic equipment and edge deployments.
- Cloud and edge: capacity for regional data centers, GPU pools, and energy-efficient compute zones.
- Public procurement: outcome-based tenders, sandboxing, and IP-friendly terms for domestic innovators.
Practical next steps for builders-now
- Bet on interoperability early: align data models and APIs with open specs to shorten integrations and vendor onboarding.
- Ship smaller, smarter: fine-tune compact, domain-focused models; track evals, safety, and unit economics from day one.
- Modernize operations: invest in event-driven pipelines, control-tower visibility, and closed-loop planning for physical flows.
- Commit to skilling: upskill engineers and ops teams on applied AI and automation. Curated options by job role: Complete AI Training - courses by job.
Net-net: the policy signal is clear-open systems, sector focus, and execution speed. If the Budget backs that with capital and clear rules, India's builders can move from pilots to production at scale.
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