IIT Madras, Walmart launch Center for Tech Excellence to accelerate AI adoption in MSMEs

NEW DELHI: Indian Institute of Technology Madras (IIT Madras) inaugurated the Walmart Center for Tech Excellence in collaboration with Walmart Global Tech (WGT) to empower micro, small and medium enterprises (MSMEs) in manufacturing and retail sectors.

“The center will work towards developing cutting-edge solutions that will help MSMEs adopt Artificial Intelligence (AI) along with digitization to drive operational efficiency and profitability,” the institute said.

The centre will work towards building an open-sourced, domain-agnostic platform that will develop engineering analytics solutions. Moreover, it will also develop a repository of case studies to accelerate AI adoption.

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Reiterating their commitment to help the community, Suresh Kumar, Global CTO and CDO, Walmart Inc. said: “As an IITM alumnus, I am especially proud of our ongoing partnership. I’m both excited and confident about the potential of our center to drive innovation in AI and make a positive impact in the MSME community in India.”

Speaking at the event, IIT Madras director V Kamakoti said: “The growth of MSMEs is very crucial for economic prosperity. IIT Madras has initiated many projects in this direction including the one that helps MSMEs in reducing energy consumption. The research carried out through the Walmart Center will be of immense value to the MSMEs.”

Walmart Center for Tech Excellence was launched at an inaugural event in the presence of Suresh Kumar; Balu Chaturvedula, SVP and country head, Walmart Global Tech; IIT-M director V Kamakoti; Raghunathan Rengaswamy, dean of global engagement, IIT Madras; and Mahesh Panchagnula, dean of Alumni and Corporate Relations, IIT-M.