India’s AI ecosystem recorded a notable advance with CoRover’s launch of BharatGPT Mini at VivaTech 2025 in Paris and a swift commercial tie-up with Ecole des Ponts Business School. The agreement marks the first European adoption of the Indian-developed conversational AI, positioning BharatGPT Mini as a practical tool for student services including resume review, program selection, and admissions guidance.

Designed for efficiency and privacy, BharatGPT Mini runs on-device and offline, reducing cloud dependency and costs while keeping sensitive data local to users’ devices. The lightweight model processes voice, text, and video inputs and supports 14 Indian languages alongside major global languages—an approach aligned with digital inclusion goals highlighted at the launch.

“BharatGPT Mini offers a timely alternative” amid rising cloud costs and data privacy concerns, CoRover said during the announcement. Founder and CEO Ankush Sabharwal framed the partnership within the broader diplomatic and innovation ties between India and France, citing the shared vision of Prime Minister Narendra Modi and President Emmanuel Macron for responsible AI.

Unveiled by Union Minister of State Jitin Prasada at VivaTech, the product’s offline capability and multilingual support were emphasized as enablers of access: “Imagine citizens accessing healthcare, banking, or governance services just by speaking in their language-no apps, no typing.” Senior Indian officials, including Abhishek Singh of the Ministry of Electronics and IT and Ambassador Sanjeev Singla, attended the ceremony, underscoring governmental backing for indigenous AI.

Early signals suggest market traction. CoRover reports enterprise interest up 60–70% and projects fivefold small-business adoption in FY26. With claims of more than 25,000 clients and over one billion users, the company frames BharatGPT Mini within a strategy of “AI sovereignty,” arguing nations should cultivate domestic AI capabilities rather than rely solely on foreign platforms.

Beyond the product launch, CoRover’s participation in the Station F‑HEC International LaunchPad-supported by India’s Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology and facilitated by the Indian Embassy in Paris—illustrates how policy initiatives are helping Indian startups scale internationally. The firm’s no‑code/low‑code platform, CoRoverBuilder, aims to democratize conversational AI creation, lowering technical barriers for enterprises and institutions.

As global AI development concentrates within a handful of technology giants, India’s emergence with privacy-focused, edge-first alternatives signals a shift in both geography and architecture-one that could expand access while reshaping cost and compliance dynamics for organizations across sectors.

---

Startup Europe India Network is the digital bridge connecting the EU, UK, and India - enabling collaboration, partnerships, and innovation between scaleups, corporates and innovators www.startupeuropeindia.net