Focus Areas - Artificial Intelligence
Digital Public Infrastructure (DPI): Advancing Interoperability through EU-India Collaboration
Context
Digital Public Infrastructure (DPI) forms the backbone of inclusive digital transformation, enabling services such as digital identity, payments, and data exchange. India’s DPI initiatives like Aadhaar, UPI, and DigiLocker have shown the potential of scalable, open infrastructures. The EU is advancing similar efforts, including the European Digital Identity Wallet and interoperable data spaces.
With both regions aiming to build open, secure, and citizen-centric digital ecosystems, EU-India collaboration offers significant opportunity.
Interoperability—the ability of systems to work seamlessly across borders and sectors—is essential for achieving this goal. Aligning on shared principles, technical standards, and governance frameworks can enhance digital sovereignty, innovation, and global digital governance.
Interoperable DPI ensures seamless exchange of services and data while respecting privacy and regulatory autonomy. It empowers citizens and businesses with access to trusted digital services, regardless of provider or geography.
Yet achieving interoperability poses challenges: technical fragmentation, policy divergence, and differing data governance approaches. Overcoming these requires joint dialogue, shared learning, and coordinated action between the EU and India.
Objectives
- Promote structured exchanges on DPI between EU and Indian stakeholders
- Foster common understanding of interoperability frameworks and policy implications
- Support collaborative research and innovation on open, secure DPI components
- Encourage multi-stakeholder dialogue and co-creation of inclusive digital solutions
- Support the EU-India Trade and Technology Council and Team Europe digital objectives.
Our Approach
- Promote structured exchanges on DPI between EU and Indian stakeholders
- Foster common understanding of interoperability frameworks and policy implications
- Support collaborative research and innovation on open, secure DPI components
- Encourage multi-stakeholder dialogue and co-creation of inclusive digital solutions
- Support the EU-India Trade and Technology Council and Team Europe digital objectives.
Current State of Cooperation
The EU and India have initiated dialogues on aligning digital public infrastructure efforts, actively engage in global forums promoting openness and interoperability, and share a common focus on building modular, inclusive, and secure DPI frameworks. A joint feasibility study is underway to assess interoperability potential and strategic alignment. Planned thematic workshops will further explore technical and regulatory dimensions. A more targeted exchange with think tanks and industry stakeholders is also being launched to support practical implementation and co-design of interoperable DPI models.
Key Areas for Further Collaboration
- Technical Interoperability: Joint development of reference architectures and APIs for identity, payments, and data exchange
- Policy & Governance Alignment: Dialogues on data protection, trust frameworks, and common principles for DPI oversight
- Innovation & Research Collaboration: Shared pilots, open-source contributions, and joint benchmarking tools
- Capacity Building & Knowledge Exchange: Training formats, study visits, and expert secondments between EU and India
- Stakeholder Engagement: Structured formats to involve startups, think tanks, and private sector actors in co-creating DPI solutions
Moving Forward
- Building on the initial alignment efforts and exploratory activities already underway, the Dialogue will move toward more structured and outcome-driven collaboration on Digital Public Infrastructure. In 2025, a joint feasibility study will deliver concrete insights into interoperability potential and areas for convergence.
- Planned workshops and technical exchanges will translate strategic discussions into practical next steps, while a dedicated engagement track with think tanks and business stakeholders will ensure that diverse perspectives inform future cooperation.
- These efforts aim to operationalise shared priorities, generate scalable models, and support the development of globally relevant, trusted DPI systems that reflect both EU and Indian values.
Publications
Links
- Lacuna Fund: AI for climate change adaptation and mitigation
- Open for Good Alliance: localized AI training data in Africa and Asia
- Open for Good Alliance: localized AI training data in Africa and Asia
- Africa-Asia Policy Maker Network on Responsible AI
- GitHub Space - FAIR Forward: technical look on our projects
- GitHub Space - FAIR Forward: technical look on our projects
