AI Champion & AI Enabler Program
A flagship initiative by the Wadhwani Centre for Government Digital Transformation (WGDT)
From idea to impact in just 3 months — shaping the future of governance.
Empowering Officers. Accelerating AI-Led Governance.
The newly launched AI Champion and AI Enabler Program is a flagship initiative by WGDT to embed real-world AI capabilities into the fabric of governance.
This program identifies and empowers selected government officers to design, develop, and implement AI solutions that solve public service challenges, ranging from citizen delivery systems to operational efficiency within departments.
What Makes This Program Unique?
Ownership from Day One
Heads of Departments nominate teams and project ideas, ensuring alignment with departmental priorities.
Action-Oriented Learning
Participants undergo 4 days of in-person training, followed by 3 months of mentored project development.
Live Prototypes
Each team builds and presents a working AI prototype or proof of concept (PoC) to a jury of experts.
Mentorship that Stays
Officers are supported throughout by our in-house experts, startup mentors, and government IT units.
Completely Free-of-Cost
All training, mentorship, and implementation execution support are fully sponsored by the Wadhwani Foundation.
What Participants Learn
- Identifying and designing high-impact AI use-cases in governance
- Applying best practices in AI ethics, data readiness, and emerging tech
- Tools for performance tracking, stakeholder engagement, and change management
- Building working prototypes for real-world public sector challenges
Who Can Participate?
- AI Champions: Senior officers who shape the department’s AI vision and guide overall strategy
- AI Enablers: Mid-level officers who manage project execution and act as internal transformation leads
The first edition of the program was successfully conducted in April 2025 in Vijayawada in partnership with the Government of Andhra Pradesh.
This collaboration laid the foundation for a delivery model rooted in deep partnerships with government stakeholders, internal teams, startups, and cloud partners, ensuring impactful outcomes and sustainable innovation from the outset.
We are now ready with a program that can serve departments nationwide and enable officers to lead AI-first governance at scale.
Whether it’s automating public feedback loops or optimizing field operations, the outcomes are designed to matter—on the ground.
We now aim to build a national network of AI-ready officers and forward-looking departments, helping government talent become AI champions and accelerate innovation at scale.
