India and the United States are now prioritising cooperation in quantum technologies, artificial intelligence, and nuclear science, with nuclear fusion and modular reactors singled out as transformative areas.

The SHANTI Act has opened India’s civil nuclear sector to private participation, paving the way for deeper collaboration with American firms.

India’s Ambassador to the United States, Vinay Mohan Kwatra, speaking at the US-India AI and Emerging Technology Forum in Washington, emphasised that quantum, nuclear, and AI represent the next frontier of bilateral cooperation.

He highlighted nuclear fusion as a particularly promising domain, noting that while conventional fission technologies remain established, fusion offers new opportunities. India and the US are already partners in the International Thermonuclear Experimental Reactor (ITER) project in France, alongside the European Union, Russia, China, and other members, aiming to build a large-scale fusion reactor.

Kwatra also identified small and modular reactors as a new technology of interest for joint collaboration. These reactors, designed for flexibility and efficiency, are expected to play a significant role in future energy strategies. 

A delegation of American nuclear companies is scheduled to visit India later this month to explore opportunities, following New Delhi’s decision to open the civil nuclear sector to private participation. 

This move was enabled by the Sustainable Harnessing and Advancement of Nuclear Energy for Transforming India (SHANTI) Act, enacted in December last year, which replaced the Atomic Energy Act of 1964 and the Civil Liability for Nuclear Damage Act of 2010. The earlier liability provisions had deterred global suppliers, but the new framework is seen as unlocking private sector potential.

The landmark India-US Civil Nuclear Agreement of 2008 had already allocated sites in Gujarat and Andhra Pradesh to US companies, with Westinghouse Electric Company expressing interest in building six 1,000 MW nuclear units. Kwatra underlined that the SHANTI Act now provides a more enabling environment for such projects, allowing private firms to participate more actively in India’s nuclear domain.

He further explained that combining nuclear fusion research with AI optimisation could accelerate progress, while future advances in quantum computing could add unprecedented computational capacity to nuclear research. This convergence of technologies, he suggested, could lead to breakthroughs in energy generation and scientific innovation.

Beyond nuclear and AI, Kwatra also stressed the importance of biopharmaceuticals as a priority area of cooperation. He noted that India and the US are collaborating across government, industry, and academia, with universities playing a crucial role in joint research.

He described biopharmaceuticals as a strong driver of the partnership, even though it is not often highlighted publicly, pointing to the deep collaboration between researchers and scientific communities in both countries.

The forum, organised by the US-India Strategic Partnership Forum, ORF America, and the Motwani Jadeja Foundation, also saw participation from deeptech start-ups and senior US officials. The discussions reinforced the view that India-US cooperation in frontier technologies is not only about government-to-government ties but also about industry and academia working together to shape the future.

Agencies