Indian Army’s tech leap: 6G, quantum, AI cloud and 300 capability projects in the works

The Parliament's Standing Committee on Defence has highlighted the army's growing involvement in advanced technology mission. This move is part of the force's broader modernisation drive, as the army is in the middle of its decade of transformation. The army is currently working to imbibe key technologies ranging from 6G development to the National Quantum Mission, according to a report examining defence modernisation and indigenisation efforts. This as the army marks 2026 as the 'Year of Networking and Data Centricity'. The parliamentary panel noted that Indian Institutes of Technology and various other research and development establishments have supported technology conversion for the armed forces and that sixteen such technology clusters have been identified. A high-power computing AI cloud is reportedly being developed for use across all the three services. As part of this push, the Indian Army signed a memorandum of understanding with IIT Madras to support innovation, while the Military College of Telecommunication Engineering has become a strategic partner in the Indian AI mission, the chips to startup mission, and quantum key distribution projects. The parliamentary panel's report also observed a shift in the nature of modern warfare, noting that conflicts now increasingly involve unmanned systems. The report also touches upon different aspects of multi-domain operations such as space, cyber and non-kinetic methods. The committee said that national missions in technology, quantum computing and AI-based high-power computing would help the armed forces build stronger digital infrastructure while at the same time also enhancing existing weapon systems. The panel also recommended that all related initiatives adhere to defined timelines so that the forces can adapt to new technologies in a timely manner. The committee noted that the defence ministry has made rapid progress in capability development and revised its acquisition procedures under the self reliance in defence framework. Over 300 schemes are reportedly planned to build up fighting capabilities over the next decade. Following Operation Sindoor, emergency procurement provisions were introduced in 2025 for both capital and revenue procurement. These new procedures have since been used to acquire drones, counter-drone systems, weapon systems, precision ammunition, electronic warfare equipment and surveillance systems. On procurement, the committee's report stated that between the 2020-21 and 2024-25 financial years, and in the current 2025-26 financial year up to December 2025, a total of 479 capital acquisition contracts were signed for defence equipment for the Army. Of these, 419 contracts, accounting for about 91% of total contract value, were signed with Indian vendors. Expenditure on indigenous procurement for Army equipment rose from Rs 17,446.83 crore in FY 2020-21 to Rs 20,853.41 crore in FY 2025-26 up to December, an increase of about 20%. In the 2025-26 budget estimates, Rs 22,600 crore, or 86% of the Army's total capital acquisition allocation of Rs 26,100 crore, was earmarked for indigenous sources. For FY 2026-27, Rs 28,909 crore, or 84% of the total allocation of Rs 34,150 crore, has been proposed for domestic procurement under capital acquisition. According to the report 163 of 175 ammunition variants, or 93%, have been indigenised. The Army has also developed in-house drone systems aimed at producing autonomous weapon systems with lethal payload capability under human control.