Budget 2026 goes big on AI: From farms to gaming, tech gets mega push

Emphasising that technology adoption must benefit all sections of society — including farmers, women in STEM, youth seeking to upskill, and Divyangjan — the Budget outlines major initiatives to advance innovation. These include the AI Mission, National Quantum Mission, Anusandhan National Research Fund, and a dedicated Research, Development and Innovation Fund.

With emerging technologies playing a central role in India’s Orange Economy, the Budget underscores the rapid growth of the Animation, Visual Effects, Gaming and Comics (AVGC) sector, which is projected to require nearly two million professionals by 2030. To strengthen this ecosystem, the government has proposed support for the Indian Institute of Creative Technologies, Mumbai, to establish AVGC Content Creator Labs in 15,000 secondary schools and 500 colleges.

The Budget also proposes setting up a new National Institute of Design in eastern India to further boost design education and nurture the country’s expanding design industry.

In the agriculture sector, the government has announced ‘Bharat-VISTAAR’ (Virtually Integrated System to Access Agricultural Resources), a multilingual AI-powered platform. The tool will integrate AgriStack portals and the Indian Council of Agricultural Research (ICAR) agricultural practice packages with AI systems. It aims to enhance farm productivity, improve decision-making, and reduce risk through customised advisory support for farmers.