Paytm founder and CEO Vijay Shekhar Sharma has offered to invest between Rs 1 crore and Rs 2 crore from his personal funds in Indian entrepreneurs developing artificial intelligence models, calling for greater investment in homegrown AI capabilities rather than relying primarily on technology developed overseas.
Speaking at Cypher 2026 in Bengaluru, Sharma said India has the capital, talent and resources required to develop its own AI models but needs more entrepreneurs willing to undertake long-term technology development.
The proposed investment would come from Sharma's personal funds rather than Paytm's corporate resources. He clarified that the publicly listed company could not commit its capital to such investments. However, he offered founders access to Paytm's distribution network to help bring their products to customers.
"Either come over, join us, or build your own and take money from me," Sharma said, inviting entrepreneurs to develop independent AI models or explore opportunities within Paytm.
He added that the initial investment amount could increase if more founders demonstrated a serious commitment to building foundational AI technology. No specific investment recipients or completed funding agreements were announced.
Sharma argued that Indian technology companies have largely focused on developing applications using AI models created elsewhere, while much of the underlying technology remains controlled by overseas companies.
He maintained that India could continue using international AI models while developing domestic alternatives for specific applications. Sharma also estimated that building an AI model could cost less than $100 million, although the figure was presented as his assessment rather than a committed development budget.
Drawing on Paytm's experience, Sharma said the company has developed its own risk assessment and fraud detection systems and adapted AI models for internal requirements.
He previously described Paytm's work on optimising a 200-billion-parameter model into a four-billion-parameter model for Indian languages, which the company operates on its own infrastructure.
Paytm has also expanded its AI capabilities through Paytm Intelligence, or Pi, an enterprise-focused offering designed to deploy AI agents across functions including sales, customer service and business operations. Its AI-enabled Soundbox supports merchant interactions in 11 Indian languages.
Sharma also addressed concerns around AI and employment, arguing that improvements in productivity could contribute to India's economic growth rather than viewing the technology solely through the possibility of job displacement.
Responding to concerns about the availability of an AI ecosystem in India, Sharma encouraged entrepreneurs to make use of existing domestic capabilities and resources.
His funding offer comes as Indian technology companies and startups evaluate opportunities to develop proprietary AI models alongside applications built on international platforms.
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