What happens when the principles that made open source software successful are applied to AI?
AI is rapidly transforming technology, but its benefits should not be concentrated among a handful of companies, platforms, or countries. The next opportunity for the open-source movement is to build communities that can collectively create, adapt, govern, and democratize AI.
In this session, we will introduce Bharat AI Mission, a community-led nonprofit initiative working to democratize AI through Open Source AI and Sovereign AI. We will explore how developers, students, researchers, academics, startups, enterprises and institutions can come together to build an inclusive AI ecosystem.
The session will share practical learnings from building an emerging open AI community in India, including:
- How to move from an idea to an active open-source community
- Designing meaningful contribution pathways for diverse participants
- Connecting developers, researchers, academia, startups and enterprises
- Building local chapters and communities around a common mission
- Creating open-source AI projects and shared intellectual capital
- Balancing openness, governance, responsible AI and sustainability
- Lessons that the broader open-source ecosystem can apply to AI
The goal is not to create another AI platform, but to explore how communities can become the infrastructure for an open, inclusive and sovereign AI future.