OpenAI partners with Indian universities to expand AI on campuses
What's the story
OpenAI has announced strategic partnerships with six leading Indian universities and three major edtech platforms. The move is a departure from individual AI usage to campus-wide deployment, aimed at creating an AI-ready workforce for India's future. The first cohort of partner institutions includes IIT Delhi, IIM Ahmedabad, AIIMS New Delhi, Manipal Academy of Higher Education (MAHE), University of Petroleum and Energy Studies (UPES), and Pearl Academy.
Impact
Transforming education through AI integration
The initiative is expected to benefit over one lakh students, faculty, and staff in the next year. This will be done through structured access to enterprise-grade ChatGPT Edu, faculty enablement programs, and responsible-use frameworks. OpenAI's focus is on institutional transformation by embedding AI across teaching, research, evaluation and campus operations while maintaining academic integrity and ethical safeguards.
Institutional role
Preparing the future workforce for an AI-driven world
Raghav Gupta, head of education at OpenAI India, stressed the importance of educational institutions in bridging the gap between AI tools and their actual usage. He said that by 2030, nearly 40% of core skills workers rely on today will change due to AI. Gupta added that "educational institutions are critical to bridging the gap between what AI tools can do and how people actually use them."
Program details
Tailored AI integration strategies for partner institutions
The collaboration with IIT Delhi focuses on engineering-led innovation, integrating AI across undergraduate, postgraduate, doctoral and executive programs. OpenAI-supported hackathons and industry days will connect student innovation to India's manufacturing, deep-tech and R&D ecosystem. IIM Ahmedabad will deploy ChatGPT Edu across degree and executive programs, embedding AI fluency into management education covering strategy, finance, operations, public policy, and entrepreneurship.
Medical application
Specific applications of AI in various disciplines
AIIMS New Delhi will explore applied AI use in medical education and clinical training. The institution plans to set up an "AI in Medical Education Hub" focused on simulations, clinical documentation, evidence synthesis, with safety benchmarks and ethical deployment. MAHE's partnership spans engineering, health sciences, business, and hospitality, with structured AI capability tracks across disciplines. UPES will focus on multidisciplinary applications, while Pearl Academy will focus on creative applications, treating AI as core academic infrastructure rather than pilot experimentation.
Certification and courses
Extending AI skills beyond campuses with edtech collaborations
IIM Ahmedabad and MAHE will also roll out OpenAI certifications to formalize structured AI capability pathways in management and multidisciplinary education. To extend AI skills beyond campuses, OpenAI is partnering with edtech platforms PhysicsWallah, upGrad, and HCL GUVI to offer structured courses on AI fundamentals and practical ChatGPT use for students and early-career professionals.