The TVK (Tamilaga Vettri Kazhagam) government, led by Chief Minister C. Joseph Vijay, has set a target of transforming Tamil Nadu into a $1.5 trillion economy by 2036 in its first Revised Budget for 2026–27, with plans to establish India’s first dedicated AI and Innovation City, ‘Arivagam’, alongside expanding AI skilling and deep-tech initiatives.
Presenting the Budget in the Assembly, Finance Minister N. Marie Wilson outlined plans to strengthen sectors such as artificial intelligence, semiconductors, quantum technology and other advanced technologies, alongside efforts to boost industrial development.
One of the key AI announcements is ‘Arivagam’, proposed as India’s first dedicated AI and Innovation City. The project will feature an AI university, an international skill development centre, a semiconductor hardware testing lab and multi-domain innovation incubators.
The proposed city will bring together AI companies, deep-tech startups, quantum technology ventures, research institutions, enterprise capability centres and government AI initiatives. A ₹5 crore feasibility study has been allocated for the project.
The Budget also proposes strengthening the Tamil Nadu Artificial Intelligence Mission (TN AI Mission) to encompass AI, Quantum Technology and AVGC-XR, with a focus on AI applications across sectors including healthcare, agriculture, education and governance.
To support AI talent development, the government announced the AI Industry Development Programme, under which an expert committee of academic and industry leaders will curate specialized AI curricula tailored to higher education tiers. The programme aims to skill five lakh youth across engineering colleges, polytechnics and ITIs by 2031 through partnerships with institutions such as IIT Madras.
The Budget also proposes expanding the Tamil Nadu School Programme for Artificial Intelligence, Robotics and Knowledge of Online Tools (TN SPARK) to introduce more students to AI and emerging technologies.
The revised Budget also includes several AI-enabled governance initiatives. These include an AI-powered Guidance 3.0 investment platform, an upgraded Tamil Nadu Single Window Portal 3.0, and the AI-enabled SPEED (Single Platform for Efficient Expedited Development) system to streamline planning approvals.
Finance Minister N. Marie Wilson also said in his speech that AI-enabled governance initiatives, including an AI-backed Quality Assurance Audit Board to monitor file movement and decision quality, alongside agentic AI workflows and speech-to-text capabilities to assist government employees.
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