India hosted the third meeting of the ITU-T Focus Group on Artificial Intelligence Native for Telecommunication Networks (FG-AINN) in New Delhi from June 11 to June 13, 2025, focusing on enhancing AI integration in telecom networks.

Established in July 2024, the FG-AINN aims to explore AI's transformative potential in telecommunications and set standards for future systems that integrate AI for improved efficiency.

The sessions included discussions on various AI applications in telecom, such as federated learning, AI in 6G, and facial recognition for SIM verification.

The meeting also addressed AI's role in 3GPP standards, network automation, and applications in smart cities, digital healthcare, and disaster-aware communication systems.

Mr. Seizo Onoe from ITU emphasized the potential of AI-native networks to enhance performance through automation and optimization.

India showcased its first AI-based Multimodal Large Language Model for Indian languages, 'Bharat Gen', highlighting contributions from Indian Institutes of Technology (IITs) and C-DOT in AI-driven network automation.

The event attracted participation from various officials, technologists, and industry representatives, marking a significant step towards advancing AI-native telecom solutions globally.

During the event, India proposed to host the ITU Plenipotentiary Conference 2030 and nominated M. Revathi as a candidate for Director of the ITU Radiocommunication Bureau, making her the first woman and regional candidate for this position.

Ms. Atsuo Okuda, ITU Regional Director, highlighted the importance of collaborative frameworks in bridging the digital divide and supporting smart initiatives across various sectors.

The FG-AINN concluded with the Build-a-Thon 2025, a coding competition aimed at developing Proof of Concepts for AI-native telecom solutions, fostering international cooperation in this field.

Participants in the Build-a-Thon received travel reimbursement and accommodation, encouraging engagement from experts across academia, industry, and startups.

Throughout the discussions, emphasis was placed on the ethical, inclusive, and secure deployment of AI in telecommunications, focusing on explainability and digital sovereignty.