4 MIN READ
Hilary Carter | 27 February 2026
At Linux Foundation Research, we’ve spent years tracking how open source technology acts as a force multiplier for economic growth. But what we are witnessing in India today is something entirely unique. During our recent combined literature review and qualitative study, one global industry leader put it bluntly: "I've never seen adoption like this before of anything, anywhere".
Our new report, AI for Economic and Social Good in India, co-authored with my colleague Anna Hermansen and commissioned by Meta, explores this phenomenon. Through semi-structured interviews with a dozen leaders across the Indian ecosystem, we moved beyond the hype to see how AI is solving structural bottlenecks in real-time. India isn’t just using AI; it is adapting it to be inclusive, multilingual, and socially grounded.
Here are four key areas where AI is delivering measurable impact today.
1. Breaking the Language Barrier in Public Services
India’s linguistic diversity—with over 20 official languages—has historically been a barrier to digital inclusion. However, the rise of multilingual models like Bhashini and Sarvam AI is fundamentally changing the landscape.
A standout case from our research is the Skill India Assistant (SIA), developed by Sarvam AI in partnership with the Ministry of Skill Development and Entrepreneurship. SIA is a generative AI assistant deployed directly on WhatsApp, allowing users to discover training and jobs through voice and text in English, Hindi, and "Hinglish". By meeting citizens on a platform they already use, SIA ensures that literacy or digital fluency are no longer hard constraints on employability.
2. Modernizing the Scales of Justice
Perhaps the most ambitious application we documented is in the legal sector. India’s judicial system faces a staggering backlog of over 50 million cases. Adalat AI is tackling this not by replacing judges, but by "unclogging the pipes" of the courtroom.
By applying AI models fine-tuned to Indian pronunciations and legal jargon, Adalat AI automates documentation-heavy workflows like transcription and legal summaries. Co-founder Utkarsh Saxena noted that cross-examinations that once took days can now be completed in hours. Currently deployed in approximately 4,000 courtrooms, this tool is freeing judicial time for what matters most: substantive legal reasoning.
3. Precision Agriculture for Smallholder Farmers
Agriculture employs 42% of India’s population, yet farmers face immense pressure from climate volatility and market inefficiencies. AI is proving to be a lifeline for those "at the bottom of the pyramid".
Farmers for Forests is a compelling example. They use the deep learning computer vision tool Detectron2 to monitor carbon sequestration across thousands of acres of remote plantations. By converting a portion of their land to fruit trees, smallholder farmers are seeing their incomes increase 3 to 5 times. AI provides the "on-ground visibility" needed to audit these activities, connecting rural producers to global carbon markets with transparency.
4. Democratizing the Creator Economy
Finally, we looked at India’s 2.5 million content creators. AI tools are turning individual storytellers into independent micro-businesses.
Take the case of Farheen Ahmad, a full-time technology creator who uses a stack of AI tools—including ChatGPT, Claude, and Meta AI—to script, edit, and distribute content. For Ahmad, AI isn't just a productivity boost; it’s what makes her career possible without a large studio. AI-powered translation and lip-syncing allow her to reach international audiences in multiple languages, ensuring her content isn't limited by geography.
The Path Forward: Accelerating Economic Growth with Open Source
A recurring theme in our interviews was the role of Open Source AI. 76% of Indian startups rely on open source to compete, as it allows for cost-effective innovation and the ability to keep sensitive data local.
India’s journey shows that for AI to be truly "for good," it must be accessible. In the wake of the 2026 AI Impact Summit, it stands as an exemplary player in the global landscape—proving that with the right mix of public investment, technical talent, and open innovation, AI can be a powerful engine for equity.