The Safety Lab: India's Plan to Test AI Tools Safely Before Using Them Everywhere
SDG 9: Industry, Innovation, and Infrastructure | SDG 17: Partnerships for the Goals
Institutions: Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology (MeitY)
This official White Paper, Shaping the AI Sandbox Ecosystem for the Intelligent Age, provides a national blueprint for designing and launching AI Sandboxes across India. This effort is critical because while India is poised to lead the global AI transformation due to its world-class Digital Public Infrastructure (DPI) and vibrant startup ecosystem, it struggles with key structural challenges. These challenges include limited access to high-quality, localized datasets, scarce access to powerful computing (compute) infrastructure, and a lack of standard validation frameworks.
AI Sandboxes offer a solution: they are secure, controlled environments where innovators can safely test, validate, and refine their AI solutions using real-world data and expert regulatory guidance. The vision is to establish an ecosystem that accelerates innovation while strengthening public trust, aligning with the national goal of positioning India as a global leader in AI by 2030. The paper outlines a comprehensive framework structured across five layers—Infrastructure, Data, Models, Innovation, and Governance—to meet this dual imperative of promoting Enablers (like subsidized access to compute) and enforcing Guardrails (like security protocols and risk management).
The sandboxes are intended to accelerate solutions for priority sectors such as public health, agriculture, and MSMEs. The model positions AI innovation as a collaborative and continuous process, ensuring that the next phase of Indian AI development, including Agentic AI and Small Language Models (SLMs), is safe, responsible, and contextually relevant to India’s unique and diverse population.
This White Paper is a major deliverable for the national AI for India 2030 initiative. It provides an operational mandate for policy-makers to move beyond theoretical governance and establish tangible infrastructure. By providing a structured framework for responsible AI by design , the sandboxes secure Technological Sovereignty and ensure that future digital services are reliable, contextually grounded, and trusted by the public, serving as a blueprint for other emerging economies globally.
What is the AI Sandbox Ecosystem?→ It is a coordinated national network of secure, specialized testing environments, involving stakeholders from government, industry, and academia. Its core function is to provide the necessary resources (data, compute, models) and regulatory oversight for innovators to safely develop, validate, and certify AI solutions, thereby reducing risk and accelerating their transition to scalable, real-world deployment.
What is “Technological Sovereignty” in AI?→ It is a national goal that means India has the independent ability to design, develop, deploy, and regulate its own core AI systems and digital infrastructure. Establishing AI sandboxes helps achieve this by fostering local innovation and ensuring that essential technology is built to meet India’s specific national needs and values.
Follow the full report here: Shaping the AI Sandbox Ecosystem for the Intelligent Age