IBM, the Department of Science and Technology of the Government of Gujarat, and the Indian AI Research Organisation (IAIRO) have announced plans to establish an Industrial Artificial Intelligence Centre of Excellence (Industrial AI CoE) in Vadodara, Gujarat. The initiative aims to drive innovation, skill development, and ecosystem growth around Industrial AI, leveraging sovereign AI technologies.
The Industrial AI CoE will function as a living lab, focusing on technology demonstrations, pilot programs, and applied research to accelerate the adoption of AI in asset-intensive sectors such as manufacturing, energy, utilities, and supply chains. By combining domain knowledge with advanced AI models, the centre seeks to enhance efficiency, safety, resilience, and quality across industries.
Key objectives include fostering collaboration between industry, academia, and government through workshops, conferences, and technical sessions. The centre will also promote capacity building via academic partnerships, hackathons, training programs, and the development of AI frameworks, reference architectures, standards, and best practices for responsible and scalable AI deployment.
Dr. Amit Sheth, Founding Director of IAIRO, stated: “The next generation of industrial systems will require AI that combines learning with domain knowledge, human expertise, and trust. Translating these capabilities into real-world impact requires an ecosystem where research, policy, and enterprise innovation evolve together. Gujarat’s industrial leadership provides a strong foundation for that transformation.”
Sriram Raghavan, General Manager of IBM Software, India and Software Innovation Lab, added: “Scaling the application of AI is a strategic imperative for manufacturing and industrial organizations. Realizing this opportunity requires advanced AI models, real-time and historical data, enterprise-ready platforms, governance, and ecosystem partnerships. We look forward to collaborating with the Government of Gujarat and IAIRO to create a platform that fosters innovation, develops skills, and accelerates the adoption of sovereign AI technologies.”
Under the collaboration, IBM and IAIRO will serve as technical and strategic advisors to the Gujarat Department of Science and Technology, providing expertise in Industrial AI, sovereign AI, and asset management platform best practices to scale AI adoption across the industrial sector.
The initiative aligns with Gujarat’s vision to become a leading destination for Industrial AI, leveraging sovereign AI technologies and strengthening India’s position in trustworthy AI innovation.