New Delhi, Feb 18 (IANS) India and France on Wednesday inaugurated the Indo French Centre for AI in Health (IF-CAIH) at the All India Institute of Medical Sciences (AIIMS) here.
In a landmark step towards strengthening Indo-French cooperation in healthcare and emerging technologies, Union Health Minister JP Nadda, and French President Emmanuel Macron inaugurated the centre, said Ministry of Health and Family Welfare,
The centre is aimed at advancing AI-driven research, medical education and clinical innovation to address complex healthcare challenges.
Macron underscored the need for India and France to build sovereign AI capacity and talent, ensuring that AI development serves humanity without overdependence on a few global powers.
He highlighted the transformative potential of ethical AI adoption across sectors, particularly in healthcare, to enhance productivity and accelerate scientific discovery.
Emphasising responsible governance, Macron called for safeguards to protect children, greater transparency in algorithms to address bias and democratic risks and the preservation of linguistic diversity in AI systems – an area where India and France share a common vision.
The IF-CAIH has been established pursuant to a Joint Memorandum of Understanding signed between AIIMS New Delhi, Sorbonne University and Paris Brain Institute.
The initiative also draws academic collaboration from Indian Institute of Technology Delhi and leading French institutions, promoting interdisciplinary research in artificial intelligence, brain health and global healthcare systems.
The initiative builds upon ongoing institutional cooperation between India and France in priority areas such as Digital Health, Antimicrobial Resistance (AMR), Human Resources for Health and the responsible use of health data.
“India and France are committed to developing the computing capacity and talent necessary to build our own trusted AI systems, as we cannot rely solely on technologies created and managed elsewhere,” said Macron.
The government reiterates its commitment to deepening healthcare cooperation with France, leveraging innovation, shared democratic values, and collective expertise to build resilient health systems and deliver better health outcomes for people in India and across the globe.
–IANS
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