The Karnataka government is being very cautious about using artificial intelligence (AI) in governance as it first needs to understand how this technology can be used responsibly, said Priyank Kharge, Minister for Home, IT, BT & E-Governance, Government of Karnataka.
During a fireside chat with Shradha Sharma, Founder & CEO, YourStory and The Bharat Project, at Techsparks 2026, Kharge remarked that the state government's cautiousness stems from the fact it owns an enormous amount of data across multiple sectors. “While I keep data privacy as part of the core and use models to develop agents or solutions, governance is very important,” the minister said.
However, this does not mean that the state government will not use AI in governance. The minister said the technology is being leveraged for basic issues such as citizen grievances, health, and mobility. He also said the government has set up a committee to study how to use AI responsibly in governance.
The minister highlighted that the Karnataka government is focused on building the much-needed skill base for AI and is engaged with several companies on this. “One knows how these models (AI) are going rogue; so we are cautious, but at the same time we are investing heavily in skilling,” he said.
“In the next couple of months, one will see a lot of startups and companies working with the government to solve problems,” the minister said.
The Karnataka government recently came out with a policy to engage with startups to solve certain governance challenges. The minister said it will adopt a sandbox environment wherein startups can build their solutions.
“If they (startups) succeed, I will ensure that it (solution) is taken across the state. But it should be a proven model and, more importantly, it should be solving real-life problems,” said Kharge.
The minister highlighted that startups possess the agility and out-of-the-box thinking to come out with innovative solutions. “I think startups deserve a chance to be with the government,” he remarked.