AI can add about $150 billion to value creation journey of manufacturing MSMEs by 2035

NEW DELHI, March 7: Artificial intelligence (AI) has the potential to contribute $135.6–$149.9 billion to the value creation journey of manufacturing MSMEs by 2035 — under a scenario where MSMEs account for 50 per cent of India’s gross manufacturing value added, a report showed on Saturday.
According to the joint report by PwC India and the Observer Research Foundation (ORF), if India succeeds in increasing manufacturing’s share of GDP to 25 per cent, and MSMEs raise their contribution to India’s manufacturing from 35.4 per cent in FY 2023–24 to 50 per cent by 2047, they stand to unlock growth opportunities in the range of $3.13–$3.21 trillion by 2047.
“AI is no longer the preserve of large enterprises. Deployed as a co‑pilot — not a replacement — it can help MSMEs break out of the low‑productivity trap and compete on quality, speed, and innovation, while strengthening jobs and supply‑chain resilience,” said Sanjeev Krishan, Chairperson, PwC in India.
“We are keen to advance thought leadership that underscores a human‑centric, ecosystem‑led approach — one that makes AI accessible, affordable, and actionable for businesses of every size. Used as an enabler of people and productivity, AI can help MSMEs leapfrog structural constraints and integrate more meaningfully into global value chains” he added.The report highlights AI’s potential to transform MSMEs across the manufacturing value chain — from predictive maintenance, energy optimisation, and vision‑based quality control on shopfloors, to AI‑enabled credit assessment, multilingual customer engagement, compliance automation, and generative design. (IANS)