CII Industry–Academia Partnership Report December 2025

 

India stands at a pivotal moment in its journey toward
becoming a globally competitive, innovation-driven
economy. The country’s rapidly expanding STEM talent
base, rising research output and growing deep-tech
entrepreneurship reflect strong foundational momentum.
Yet, unlocking India’s full potential will require more than
incremental improvements—it demands coordinated
action, forward-looking reforms, and a deliberate shift toward a high-trust, high-productivity research and innovation ecosystem.

This report underscores the critical levers needed to accelerate that transition: strengthening institutional autonomy, unlocking flexible and diversified funding, and
embedding targeted incentives that reward quality, collaboration and translational impact. Equally essential are deeper industry–academia partnerships, globally
benchmarked governance models, and mission-driven research consortia that can mobilize talent and resources around national priorities. 

Report- https://cii-industryacademia.in/images/pdf/Final-CII-EYP-IAP-Report_2.12.25.pdf

 

Sample chapter -Top 100 Indian Innovations (2025)

Download Sample Chapter of Top 100 Indian Innovations (2025) 

Concept note on PROPOSED AMENDMENT TO THE DESIGNS ACT, 2000

 Key proposals for amendment to the Act, which are to be fleshed out further, are presented in broad outline in this concept note for the purpose of consultation with stakeholders with a view to receive their inputs on the core concepts.

1. Virtual Designs Protection

Last few years have seen rapid advancements in technology transforming the way consumers interact with products and services. Graphical user interfaces (“GUIs”), icons, animated characters, and immersive virtual environments are nowadays a core part of consumer experience across sectors like technology, fintech, gaming, e-commerce, healthcare, and digital services. These visual elements embody significant aesthetic value. Stakeholders have also advocated the ideas of providing protection to GUIs and other virtual designs under Designs Act, in consultations with DPIIT.

To address this gap, it is proposed to clarify and modernise the definitions of “design” and “article” to expressly enable protection of virtual designs, independent of any physical carrier. The definition of “design” may be expanded by broadening the scope as well as meaning of “industrial process” and by expressly including animation, movement, and transition, thereby clarifying that design protection extends beyond static visual features to dynamic visual effects that are central to contemporary digital and screen-based designs.

In parallel, the definition of “article” may be revised to expressly cover items in physical or non-physical form, including GUIs, icons, graphic symbols, typefaces, augmented reality graphical user interfaces, and other virtual products provided under Locarno classification, clarifying that a design may subsist regardless of whether it is embodied in a tangible object or materialises in a purely digital or virtual environment. These amendments would help explicitly decoupling design protection from the requirement of physical embodiment, enabling protection for designs in virtual, augmented, and immersive digital environments. Corresponding amendments can be considered to be made to other provisions of the Design Act, including the infringement related provision, to give effect to protection of virtual designs.

Download- https://www.dpiit.gov.in/static/uploads/2026/01/791a71ebde47d93b67560f7394be2fec.pdf

note on micro data centres prepared by people+ai, EkStep Foundation

 India is on the path to becoming a global leader in AI, but realising this vision requires a robust and scalable infrastructure. A distributed network of micro data centres (MDCs), designed to handle critical CPU and GPU workloads while occupying significantly less space and demanding lower upfront investments, represents the future of accessible, scalable, and cost-effective AI infrastructure in India.

This paper delves into the key components and requirements for establishing micro data centres, drawing on our research to define their scope and functionality. We categorise a micro data centre as one with a capacity of 25-300 kW, typically occupying around 800 to 3000 square feet. These data centres are crucial for expanding AI capabilities to the edge, enabling sustainable development through the integration of renewable energy. The flexible CPU-GPU ratio allows MDCs to scale efficiently, providing resilient and self-sufficient compute power necessary for India's growing AI use cases.

Currently, India hosts fewer than 10 micro data centres. Although MDCs lack a standardised definition or size, they are emerging as a critical segment in the hosting infrastructure landscape. Existing MDCs in India serve both domestic and international clients, but there is a pressing need to expand beyond mega data centres to include more micro facilities. The paper explores their use cases in sectors such as healthcare, banking, financial services, insurance (BFSI), and large-scale government operations. The increasing demand at the edge, driven by population growth in Tier II and Tier III cities and the rise of engineering universities focused on deep learning, highlights the importance of these centres.

The paper also examines the capital expenditure (CAPEX) and operational expenditure (OPEX) models associated with micro data centres. Our analysis suggests that building green MDCs can enhance cost-effectiveness, providing a compelling economic model. We predict that an investment of INR 60 crores in a MDC could yield a return of up to 3 times that of a larger data centre. Financing strategies and the potential impact on overall economic growth are also discussed.

Finally, we review the current policies in India that support the development and deployment of micro data centres. Major costs associated with software licenses and certifications (e.g., Uptime and TIA-942) need to be addressed through standardization and improved policy frameworks. Government initiatives, similar to the Udaan scheme, are necessary to foster the growth of smaller players in the MDC market.

This endeavour requires collaboration across various stakeholders, including compute users in both the private and public sectors, government ministries and states responsible for policy creation and enforcement, and investors. The concept of Open Cloud Compute suggests that if hundreds of smaller players can operate collectively like a large cloud provider, a network of micro players can function like a mega network, driving the next phase of AI infrastructure development in India.

Read the paper-https://docs.google.com/document/d/19dcYkBIV84u1JvCmxwy15nFzWEkx4KJ_3hwNyagvO-k/edit?pli=1&tab=t.0

https://youtu.be/-uqR8JA6GPk?si=BDyfpVwaivy0r28Z