Artificial intelligence is a reality that is changing the way all industries work. The impact of AI is such that it is fast transcending the borders of fantasy and truth. Voice-controlled machines, face-recognition by phones, and even the smallest of choices on the internet being recorded for future product or service recommendations are things that we are now witnessing in our everyday life. The Internet of Things is also an extension of AI, which is now being explored globally.

There are three main branches of AI, namely Natural Language Processing (NLP), Machine Learning (ML), and Computational Statistics. All the domains are closely related as NLP relies heavily on statistics and computational linguistics. ML is concerned with the future learning and decision-making by computer systems, enabling them to do what only humans can. Robotics and Deep Learning are also associated with ML. To explore a career in AI, the domains that you need to master are engineering, advanced maths, and statistics, computer science, robotics, physics, and coding.

Many top institutes in India have full-fledged courses on AI and ML. Most colleges make it mandatory for students to have science and maths in their 10+2 for admission to AI courses. These courses are developed on the models of global advancement in the field and taught by the most competent faculty. Some of the top colleges for doing B. Tech. in AI are:

1. Indian Institute of Technology (Hyderabad): This top college for AI in India offers the course for AI and ML as a specialisation at the UG, PG and Ph.D. levels by the Computer Science department, as well as through a dedicated Department of AI. The cost of the course is around 1.5 lakh.
2. Indian Institute of Technology (Kharagpur): The Department of Computer Science covers the study of AI as an elective at the Master’s level. There is an extensive research facility at the university students are encouraged to take up projects in AI and ML innovation through a dedicated AI Lab.
3. Indian Institute of Technology (Chennai): Ample emphasis is given on AI studies by IIT Chennai. The Robert Bosch Centre for Data Science and Artificial Intelligence (RBC-DSAI) was established in 2017 for exemplary research in the field. Electives in AI and ML are there within the Electrical Engineering department.
4. Indian Institute of Technology (Kanpur): The top University in India for engineering, IIT Kanpur’s B. Tech. in CSE has Artificial Intelligence as a minor program. It comprises other subjects that are related to AI, like ML, Deep learning and NLP.
5. Indian Institute of Technology (Delhi): Another premier institute in India’s capital city, has started covering AI, ML, NLP and Algorithms as special topics under the B. Tech. in CSE program.
6. Indian Institute of Technology (Mumbai): This campus of IIT has also taken cognisance of the importance of AI development and started a Certificate Program in Machine Learning and AI. Further, the B. Tech. in CSE covers the subjects as electives. In 2018, the college tied up with IBM for collaborative research in AI.
7. Indian Institute of Technology (Gandhinagar): The department of CSE is exceptionally strong at IIT Gandhinagar. It covers the subjects of machine learning, computer architecture, data mining, etc. as part of the B. Tech. as well as M. Tech. programs.
8. BITS (Pilani): As a revolutionary step, a Certificate PG course in AI and ML has been introduced for professionals and freshers. This is an 11-month long course and involves research in various facets of AI.
9. Vellore Institute of Technology: A well-known college VIT offers an integrated 5-year course at the PG level in Computational Statistics and Data Analytics. Plus, there are multiple B. Tech. in CSE courses, with specialisation in AI & ML, as well as IoT. These courses are available in both campuses of VIT, namely, Bhopal and Chennai. The college ties up with leading industry players for projects to make the courses up-to-date and useful. Admission for B. Tech. is through the VITEEE exam conducted by the college.
10. Chandigarh University: There are dedicated courses offered by the Chandigarh University in AI and ML, as well as Cloud Computing, Big Data and Analytics, and Internet of Things. These courses are part of the CSE branch of engineering. The placement records by this college are exemplary, as top IT companies employ students in AI and ML domains. The 4-year long courses are comprehensive, covering all elements of AI programming and development.
11. Indraprastha Institute of Information Technology: The IIIT Delhi offers courses in AI and Edge AI, Advanced Internet of Things, and Software Production Evolution and maintenance. These have different admission criteria, and the duration may also vary. There is a direct admission test conducted by IIIT and it also accepts scores of JEE and JAC. The fee for the entire course is around 5 lakh.
12. SRM Institute of Science and Technology: This Chennai-based college offers advanced courses for AI as part of Computer Science Engineering. The fee for the full course is quite high at around 10 lakh. Admission is through JEE Main as well as the exams conducted by SRM IST college.
13. DY Patil International University: Based in Pune, this university offers excellent facilities for testing and research in the CSE domain. The fee structure is around 2 lakh per year for the 4-year long B. Tech. course.
14. University of Petroleum and Energy Studies: A leading university of India, UPES Dehradun, offers a course in AI through its School of Computer Science. There are electives as a specialisation as well as a minor choice subject. Students have to pass the UPES Engineering Aptitude Test or attain at least 60% marks in JEE Main for admission to UPES. The fee for the full course is about 12 lakh, making it one of the more expensive options.
15. Jain University, Bangalore: It’s a deemed-to-be-university, and offers several engineering courses in various domains. Specialisations in AI and ML, Internet of Things, Data Science, Cloud Technology, and Cybersecurity are offered both as B. Tech and M. Tech courses. The entire course costs around 6 lakh. The Jain Entrance Test (JET) is conducted for admissions.

Apart from these top universities in AI, many other colleges have started offering either dedicated courses in AI or specialisation in AI and ML for B. Tech. courses. The scope of this domain is the widest as it has application in most of the developing areas.