Microsoft-NASSCOM partnership to train 10 lakh students nationwide in AI by 2021

Microsoft on Thursday joined hands with industry-driven learning ecosystem Nasscom FutureSkills to launch a nation-wide initiative that aims to skill 10 lakh students in Artificial Intelligence (AI) by 2021.

Commencing from September 21, this initiative called "AI Classroom Series" will be paced in three modules.

The online classes will include live demos, hands-on workshops and assignments through self-learning, virtual instructor-led training, and mentoring.

These introductory sessions on AI will be available for undergraduate students at no cost and will cover the basics of data science, machine learning models on Azure, and understanding of cognitive services to build intelligent solutions, Microsoft said.

The partnership with Nasscom FutureSkills is an extension of Microsoft's global skilling initiative to help 25 million people worldwide acquire new digital skills, needed to thrive in a digital economy.

"As economies start to recover from the pandemic, expanded access to digital skills will be one of the key drivers of inclusive economic growth," Rohini Srivathsa, National Technology Officer, Microsoft India, said in a statement.

"Technologies like AI are becoming enablers for every business today, making the need for creating an AI-ready ecosystem vital for India's economic and social value creation."

The teaching sessions will be conducted by various experts, including experts from Microsoft and Nasscom.

Students will have the option to choose from multiple time slots and plan their own learning pace.

Registered students will also have access to content and developer tools from Microsoft and GitHub, the company said, adding that participation certificate from the Indian IT industry's apex body and Microsoft will be awarded to students at the end of the series.

"The joint initiative with Microsoft aims to not only build future AI skilled talent but also nurture job creation through constant reskilling and upskilling for the years to come," said Amit Aggarwal, VP and CEO, IT-ITeS Sector Skills Council, Nasscom.

The partnership will also steer collaboration with various academic institutes and colleges to integrate new Cloud and AI technologies into the curriculum.