India Jumps to 3rd Spot in Global AI Rankings, Leaving UK and South Korea Behind

New Delhi: India has moved up sharply in the global race for artificial intelligence, securing the third position in Stanford University’s Global AI Vibrancy Tool 2025, which is based on 2024 data. Just a year ago, India was ranked seventh.

With a score of 21.59, India now stands behind only the United States at the top with 78.6 points and China in second place with 36.95. The latest ranking puts India ahead of South Korea (17.24) and the United Kingdom (16.64).

The report shows that India’s AI growth is not slow or accidental. It is being driven by strong hiring, rising investments, and clear policy focus. In 2023, India recorded a 16.8 percent year-on-year rise in AI-related hiring compared to overall hiring. This signals a fast-growing demand for AI skills across industries.

South Korea and the UK continue to invest in AI as well. The UK moved up one position from sixth to fifth, while South Korea followed closely after India. However, India’s jump from seventh to third is one of the biggest moves in this year’s index.

The Stanford Global AI Vibrancy Tool is a global ranking created by Stanford University to measure how strong a country’s AI ecosystem is. It looks at several factors, including AI research, talent, funding, business activity, and government policies. The aim is to show which countries are leading and how fast others are catching up.

AI as a national priority

The report makes it clear that countries across the world are now treating AI as a national priority. This focus has grown stronger over the past year.

In 2024, the United States introduced 59 new AI-related rules, more than double the number seen in 2023. These rules came from twice as many government agencies. At a global level, mentions of AI in laws and policy papers rose 21.3 percent across 75 countries since 2023. This is nearly nine times higher than in 2016.

Governments are also putting serious money behind AI. Canada has committed $2.4 billion, China launched a $47.5 billion semiconductor fund, France announced €109 billion, and India pledged $1.25 billion for AI development. Saudi Arabia’s Project Transcendence, with a planned investment of $100 billion, is among the greatest efforts worldwide.

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