AI with purpose: A conversation with Rishi Bal
What does it take for AI to reshape jobs, solve legal backlogs, and empower every Indian, from farmers to students?
In this episode of Be All You Can, Rishi Bal, Head of BharatGen, shares his 25-year AI journey, from geometric modeling to leading India's AI ecosystem with 9 top institutes and 100+ researchers.
He spotlights Krishisathi's voice-first revolution (market prices to onion storage), transformative potential in agriculture, education, healthcare, and legal systems, plus overcoming hurdles like talent shortages and infrastructure while AI reshapes (not replaces) jobs for an adaptable India.
His vision is a roadmap for business leaders in India and for professionals pursuing business and personal growth, and building successful businesses through inclusive innovation.
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Feb 20, 20260:01: Do we have enough AI builders? Do we have enough talent in the country?
0:07: Do we have enough infrastructure in terms of GPUs?
0:11: When you start to go down that stack, do we even have enough power in India to be able to power the needs of intelligence?
0:20: Hello and welcome to another episode of Be All You Can.
0:24: I am Vijay Balakrishnan, your host for today.
0:29: And I am thrilled, as I am sure you will be too, about our guest.
0:33: Someone who has been shaping meaningful conversations around AI, innovation and digital growth in India.
0:41: Please welcome Rishi Bal, the head of BharatGen.
0:46: Rishi works at the intersection of technology and real world impact.
0:52: Welcome Rishi, welcome to Gottage Enterprises.
0:56: We just asked you areas where we might be okay to ask you questions and you said AI.
1:03: So AI seems to be everywhere right now.
1:06: What first drew you into the space?
1:09: And was there a moment when you realized this wasn't just a career choice and something deeper for you?
1:15: First of all, thanks for having me here.
1:17: It's really nice to be on campus here, doing this recording with you.
1:23: It's just fascinating when you drive in and you look at the diversity of work that's happening.
1:29: Just from the gate to this office building, you realize what a large enterprise Gottage is. 1:36: And the kind of diverse work happening here.
1:41: My entry into AI was somewhat accidental.
1:44: I was headed off to grad school and I was super fascinated by geometric modeling. 1:51: And I wanted to start grad school and do some research work in that area.
1:57: It just so happened that the professor I wanted to work with, his research lab filled up.
2:04;: And I was looking around at other options.
2:07 And I found this interesting young professor that was doing work in applying AI to engineering problems.
2:15: And so, you know, that was plan B.
2:17: It sounded interesting, but I had no idea what that was going to include.
2:22: This is way back in the late 90s.
2:26: And I can tell you that, you know, AI, I think, spent the next two decades just being an area of great potential.
2:35: But not one that was actually manifesting that potential in interesting ways.
2:42: And so I feel like that AI journey has been really long, waiting for the breakthrough moment.
2:49: And I think it was in maybe 2018-19 when it became very apparent that this next generation was finally going to take us to what we believe the potential was going to be all along.
3:01: So I feel very lucky to have been involved with this journey.
3:03: I just wish it would have been a lot shorter than this.
3:07: Absolutely.
3:08: Great.
3:09: So now we want to talk about Krishisathi, the agriculture sector application that you helped build.
3:18: First of all, truly impressive.
3:20: I myself come from a little bit of an agrotech background.
3:23: But what sparked the idea?
3:25: And how do you see AI fitting into the needs of farmers, specifically in India?
3:32: That’s a great question.
3:35: We believe the greatest potential for AI is in actually helping those who are furthest from it today.
3:44: AI fundamentally can change access to information, knowledge, and access to the world in a very different way.
3:56: Those of us who live in cities already have access to some of that today.
4:01: But when you move out of cities and towns into rural India, access is limited.
4:11: Connectivity can sometimes be an issue.
4:14: Language or functional literacy is an issue.
4:17: We are very much a speech-dominated culture.
4:19: So we said, let’s go after the hard end of the problem.
4:22: Let’s build something voice-first for people who don’t have access to this technology.
4:32: The journey of Krishisathi has been fascinating.
4:35: One of the first things we learned was how little we knew about the user’s life and needs.
4:46: It starts with empathy and asking, how can I help this person?
4:53: Our first few iterations, in hindsight, were laughable.
5:03: We kept simplifying and asking what the simplest way was to deliver this service.
5:13: What are the questions people actually care about?
5:17: We quickly learned our assumptions were wrong.
5:23: We thought they wanted crop and soil advice.
5:28: Instead, the first question was when to take produce to market.
5:33: What is the price today, and what will it be next week?
5:37: One of my favourite questions was about storing onions, not growing them.
5:46: How can I store onions better?
5:49: That’s when we realised the limits of our knowledge.
5:55: And we worked with domain experts to fill those gaps.
5:59: Very interesting.
6:05: Beyond agriculture, which other sectors will shape India’s AI story a decade from now?
6:15: It’s hard to pick just two, but education is a big one.
6:21: Bringing expert education to every Indian child, regardless of location or income.
6:31: Education holds enormous promise for us.
6:36: I’m going to cheat and name a few more.
6:39: Healthcare is another massive opportunity.
6:44: Especially in solving last-mile healthcare access.
6:50: AI can play a big role there.
6:54: Another critical area is the legal domain.
7:00: We have an enormous backlog of court cases.
7:06: This slows down the entire system.
7:12: Every rental agreement and transaction carries this fear.
7:19: No one wants a dispute that could take 20 years to resolve.
7:29: AI offers a chance to leapfrog in the legal domain.
7:36: Very true.
7:42: What are the major hurdles for AI in India today?
7:49: There’s a familiar list of challenges.
7:57: Do we have enough AI builders and talent?
8:04: Do we have enough GPU infrastructure?
8:10: Do we have enough power to support intelligence at scale?
8:16: There are also issues of sovereignty and access to chips.
8:24: These challenges span the entire supply chain.
8:28: We need parallel teams solving each problem step by step.
8:35: A commonly asked question is whether AI will replace jobs.
8:40: Or will it reshape them?
8:47: Let’s take a historical perspective.
8:58: Every wave of technology has disrupted job markets.
9:12: There is displacement, but also relocation.
9:16: When computers entered banking, people feared job losses.
9:25: Employees even went on strike.
9:29: Two decades later, banking still employs millions.
9:38: People are doing different and more valuable work.
9:46: The same happened with ATMs.
9:51: Cashiers didn’t disappear.
9:55: They moved into more important roles.
10:03: Change is inevitable, and adaptation is necessary.
10:10: India is an adaptable culture.
10:16: We will figure out how to adjust.
10:21: Very nice.
10:29: What impact do you hope your work will have on the country?
10:35: Our impact will be collective.
10:43: We are one cog in a larger wheel.
10:49: Real impact happens when everyone comes together.
10:53: Builders, ecosystem creators, data providers, and users.
11:02: That’s when AI’s true impact in India will emerge.
11:10: This journey must be shared by all of us.
11:19: AI inclusivity and AI-building inclusivity are critical.
11:31: Congratulations on BharatGen receiving government funding.
11:36: What does this mean for the organisation’s journey?
11:42: Is it acceleration or diversification?
11:52: Especially aligned with the IndiaAI mission.
11:56: BharatGen was set up as a nonprofit by design.
12:01: Our goal is not just to build AI, but the AI ecosystem.
12:08: We want to build models and serve all Indians.
12:16: But also create an ecosystem of AI creators.
12:22: We work with nine top institutes across India.
12:27: This enables their research labs.
12:30: Over 100 researchers and students work with us nationwide.
12:37: We are actively training the next generation of AI builders.
12:41: This funding helps us scale and accelerate that work.
12:53: It’s about building a stronger AI ecosystem, not just bigger models.
13:00: It’s also a huge vote of confidence.
13:03: The Indian government has been very progressive on AI.
13:17: This support is a strong stamp of approval for our mission.
13:30: Congratulations once again.
13:32: How should organisations like ours think about AI transformation?
13:36: How can companies use this tipping point effectively?
13:51: I’m glad you asked that.
13:53: This technology is going to be disruptive.
14:03: It’s important to show up early and embrace AI.
14:13: People need to get their hands dirty with AI.
14:20: You don’t need to build models from scratch.
14:27: Dabbling helps you become a better consumer of AI.
14:37: Transformation can’t happen from the outside.
14:42: You have to participate to create real change.
14:49: It’s encouraging to see your organisation’s commitment.
14:57: Kudos to your team for that investment.
15:02: Thanks for having me.
15:07: This has been a fantastic conversation.
15:12: Thank you for listening to Be All You Can.
15:18: A podcast by Godrej Enterprises Group.
15:23: Stay tuned for more stories that inspire action and impact.