New Delhi: The Digital India Foundation (DIF), a founding member of the AI Alliance Network (AIANET), has strongly objected to the membership application of Pakistan’s AI Technology Centre (AITeC) to AIANET, citing serious risks to the alliance’s credibility, security, and shared values, according to a statement released by Digital India Foundation.
Digital India Foundation stated that Pakistan’s systemic support of terrorism, ongoing scrutiny by the Financial Action Task Force (FATF), potential weaponisation of Artificial Intelligence (AI) through AITeC’s specialised labs, and the absence of institutional accountability in Pakistan’s AI ecosystem, pose a direct threat to India’s national security and to AIANET’s foundational principles.
Dr. Arvind Gupta, Co-Founder and Head, Digital India Foundation, said, “The membership application of AITeC should be seen as Pakistan’s way of gaining access to our R&D and technology with the aim of weaponizing AI through their specialized labs. We need to ensure that this does not happen. The Pahalgam terrorist attack and the recent Indo-Pak conflict highlight the need for continued vigilance by India to ensure that Pakistan’s efforts to undermine regional stability do not succeed.”
Digital India Foundation also raised concerns about several of AITeC’s centres, which it said have dual-use and military applications. The Autonomous AI & Decision Support Lab, Computer Vision Lab, and Software Optimization for Edge Computing Lab were cited as possessing capabilities that could be redirected toward offensive cyber operations, cross-border attacks, and autonomous targeting systems.
The Foundation said that these technologies, in the hands of a state with a record of supporting terrorism, could enable operational enhancements for nonstate actors. It referenced the 2025 U.S. Country Reports on Terrorism, noting Pakistan’s continued protection of groups like Lashkar-e-Taiba and Jaish-e-Mohammed.
Further, highlighting security concerns, Digital India Foundation pointed to Pakistan’s ongoing FATF grey-list status due to failures in countering terror financing and money laundering. It warned that AITeC’s Data Science Lab and Quantum Machine Learning & Cognitive Computing Lab could potentially be misused to automate illicit financial flows and cryptocurrency-based fundraising for extremist networks.
Digital India Foundation contrasted this with AIANET members, which are governed by democratic institutions, enforceable data protection laws, and independent oversight bodies that uphold ethical and accountable AI development, conditions absent in Pakistan’s current environment.
The Foundation said in its letter that Pakistan’s AI ecosystem suffers from major deficiencies in education, research, and governance. It noted that Pakistan’s draft National AI Policy remains vague and unenforceable, and the country lacks a national data protection law. It added that military-led entities such as the Pakistan Air Force’s Centre of Artificial Intelligence and Computing (CENTAIC) dominate the nation’s AI strategy, undermining civilian innovation.
Digital India Foundation emphasized that AITeC’s integration into this militarised AI framework directly contradicts the AIANET’s mission to advance AI for the public good and peaceful global cooperation.
In its concluding appeal, Digital India Foundation urged AIANET members to reject AITeC’s application entirely to preserve the alliance’s integrity, protect global AI collaboration, and uphold the principles of responsible, democratic, and peaceful technological advancement.
(ANI)
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