'We’re Busy Building Bhujia Companies' - Gaurav Munjal’s Post On India Missing AI Boom Sparks Heated Debate Online

Gaurav Munjal, CEO of Unacademy and Airlearn, recently sparked a lively debate with his post comparing India’s focus on consumer businesses to the global race in artificial intelligence.

"$465B investment in AI globally. Less than $1B in India,” Munjal wrote. “We are busy building Bhujia companies while others are dominating in AI.”

His tongue-in-cheek remark struck a chord with many LinkedIn users but also drew sharp reactions.

How did social media react? 

Some, like Rishi K., joined in the humour, saying, “Ice cream too.” Others defended traditional businesses. Samrat Parasnis commented, “Bhujia is a good business, actually,” while Utkarsh V. replied sarcastically, “No, let’s bash long-established profit-making businesses and latch on to hype.”

Several people reflected on why India has lagged in high-tech innovation. Sandeep Kumar noted, “India’s tech boom was built on IT services… We became the world’s back office, not its innovation lab.”

Zain R. added that India often adopts global trends late, writing, “We can hope that by 2036 we will arrive on AI as well!”

Some also questioned the local funding mindset. Nilotpal Chauhan said, “They won’t fund ChatGPT wrappers but feel confident to fund OpenAI’s Indian version… crazy!!”

Unapologetic Sanatani commented, “Wrong comparison. Bhujia will still fill your stomach; AI will snatch your income to buy bhujia.”

Guru Kiran pointed out the money flowing into traditional businesses: “But a bhujia company is getting Rs 8,500 crore for a 10% stake.”

Shubham Saurabh offered a lighter take: “Bhujia companies have been here for a long, long time, and I love Aloo Bhujia by Haldirams. I don’t even want them to look at what AI is doing. Not all bhujia companies are bad. Khane ko bhujia hi milega, AI nahi.”

Abhishek Khanna added humour, “Food for thought—what food will humans enjoy eating while AI is doing their work? My take: bhujia with chai.”

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What does the data say? 

A United Nations report says India and China were the only developing countries with significant private investments in artificial intelligence (AI) in 2023. India ranked tenth, investing $1.4 billion, while China was second with $7.8 billion.

The report, released by UNCTAD, also showed India improved its ranking to 36th on the ‘Readiness for Frontier Technologies’ index, up from 48th in 2022.

This index measures a country’s preparedness across areas like ICT, skills, R&D, industry, and finance. Although India scored well in industrial capacity (10th) and R&D (3rd), it still lags in ICT infrastructure (99th) and skills (113th).

The report also warned that while AI is set to become a $4.8 trillion market by 2033, its benefits and expertise remain concentrated in a few countries, raising concerns about automation and job losses.