India is blazing a unique trail in artificial intelligence governance through its innovative “techno-legal” approach—combining technical solutions with regulatory frameworks rather than relying solely on legislation. This strategy positions India as a global leader in balanced AI governance, prioritizing innovation while ensuring safety through practical technological interventions.
Breaking Away from Regulation-Heavy Models
Union IT Minister Ashwini Vaishnaw outlined India’s distinctive approach during the AI Viksit Bharat Roadmap launch, explaining: “Many parts of the world treat AI safety as a legal challenge—they want to pass a law and believe that safety will follow. We have taken a techno-legal approach”.
This represents a fundamental departure from the European Union’s regulation-centric model, where comprehensive legal frameworks like the EU AI Act take precedence. “This is very different from Europe and many other parts of the world, where the tilt is towards regulation—passing laws, creating regulatory bodies,” Vaishnaw noted.
India’s philosophy centers on allowing “technology to innovate and evolve, and then building the right regulatory structures, instead of prescribing them upfront”—a more adaptive and innovation-friendly stance.
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AI Safety Institute as Virtual Innovation Network
India’s AI Safety Institute operates as a “virtual network of institutions,” with each organization tackling specific AI challenges through technical solutions rather than bureaucratic oversight. This distributed approach leverages India’s robust academic and research ecosystem.
IIT Jodhpur leads deepfake detection research, developing algorithms that can detect deepfakes with “very high accuracy” using advanced machine learning frameworks. The institute’s work exemplifies how technical solutions can address AI safety concerns more effectively than regulatory prohibitions alone.
Other premier institutions are working on specialized AI safety challenges including privacy enhancement, cybersecurity threats, and ethical AI deployment—creating a comprehensive technical safety net.
Practical Technical Solutions in Action
Parliament’s Standing Committee on Communications and Information Technology has urged the government to develop both legal and technological solutions for combating AI-generated fake news, recommending close coordination between ministries to create concrete technical interventions.
Current projects include:
- Fake speech detection using deep learning frameworks
- Software development for detecting deepfake videos and images
- Content provenance mechanisms to trace AI-generated content origins
- National Registry of AI Use Cases to standardize and certify applications
The approach recognizes that “AI could be used to flag potentially fake news and misleading content for review by human intervention as a second layer of monitoring”—combining automated detection with human oversight.
Risk-Based Framework Without Stifling Innovation
While India hasn’t enacted comprehensive AI legislation like the EU AI Act, it’s developing a sophisticated risk-based classification system through technical standards rather than legal mandates.
The March 2024 MeitY advisory requires entities to register AI models with the government and label unreliable systems, but focuses on transparency and user awareness rather than prohibitive regulations.
This creates a “techno-regulatory” approach through automated decision-making frameworks, risk-based classification of data fiduciaries, and technical compliance requirements—addressing AI risks while preserving innovation space.
Comparative Advantage Over Global Models
Europe’s AI Act categorizes systems into prohibited, high-risk, limited-risk, and minimal-risk categories with corresponding regulatory obligations and compliance burdens that can slow innovation cycles.
India’s techno-legal model achieves similar safety outcomes through technical standards, industry self-regulation, and adaptive governance structures that evolve with technological capabilities rather than constraining them.
The approach reflects India’s unique position as both a major AI consumer and developer, requiring governance frameworks that support the country’s ambitions to become a global AI leader while ensuring responsible deployment.
Building Indigenous Technical Capabilities
India’s strategy includes substantial government funding for R&D projects at premier institutions like IITs to build homegrown AI tools for deepfake detection, privacy enhancement, and security applications.
The Digital Personal Data Protection Act (DPDP) 2023 introduces technical compliance requirements including automated decision-making safeguards, privacy by design principles, and risk-based data processing frameworks—embedding AI governance into existing legal structures rather than creating new regulatory bodies.
Sector-specific guidelines from regulators like RBI, SEBI, and IRDAI provide targeted technical standards for AI deployment in banking, securities, and insurance—demonstrating how techno-legal approaches can address industry-specific risks.
Global Leadership Through Balanced Innovation
India’s techno-legal approach is gaining international recognition as a model for balancing innovation with safety. The AI Impact Summit in February 2026 will showcase India’s governance innovations to global stakeholders.
By integrating technology complements with legal frameworks, India is creating scalable, adaptive governance structures that can respond to rapidly evolving AI capabilities while maintaining democratic oversight and public safety.
This positions India as a “third way” between the US’s minimal regulation approach and Europe’s comprehensive legal framework—offering a pragmatic model that other developing nations may adopt for their own AI governance challenges.
The techno-legal model demonstrates that effective AI governance doesn’t require choosing between innovation and safety—it requires building technical solutions that enhance both simultaneously.
