With a goal of equipping two million individuals with AI skills by 2025, Microsoft has introduced a major skilling initiative in India named ADVANTA(I)GE INDIA. This initiative is a part of Microsoft’s broader Skills for Jobs programme, focusing on empowering India’s workforce with future-ready skills in alignment with responsible AI principles.
According to Microsoft’s recent Work Trend Index, 90 per cent of Indian leaders believe that new skills are essential for individuals to adapt to the growth of AI, while 78 per cent of Indian workers feel they lack the necessary AI capabilities for their current roles.
The programme will aim to address this gap by concentrating on training individuals in Tier 2 and Tier 3 cities, as well as rural areas, fostering inclusive socio-economic progress in the era of AI.
Furthermore, the training will be conducted through collaborations with governments, non-profits, corporate organisations, and communities.
Collaborating with the Ministry of Skill Development & Entrepreneurship and 10 state governments, the company will provide basic and advanced AI training to 5,00,000 students and job seekers in 100 rural vocational education institutions. Additionally, the company will also offer in-depth AI technical skills training to 1,00,000 young women in Tier 2 and Tier 3 cities, focusing on cloud, AI and cybersecurity.
The initiative will raise awareness of responsible AI use and AI-enabled careers for 4,00,000 students in remote and tribal regions through various global initiatives.
Furthermore, Microsoft plans to strengthen its partnership with India’s National Programme for Civil Services Capacity Building to equip 2,50,000 government officers with essential generative AI knowledge. This will enhance their productivity and transform digital governance in rural India.
In the nonprofit sector, the company will organise the India Non-profit Leaders Summit in April 2024, aiming to provide AI skilling resources and technologies to 2,500 non-profits and NGOs with LinkedIn.
This summit will help train 7,50,000 learners, including underserved youth, young women and jobseekers, in AI and technical skills. Microsoft will also grant non-profits access to the Resources Hub for both Microsoft and LinkedIn, assisting them in maximising their social impact in the AI era.