Q: What is the central bank's proposal regarding the Unified Payments Interface (UPI)?
A: The Reserve Bank of India (RBI) has put forward a proposal to integrate conversational payments into the Unified Payments Interface (UPI) using artificial intelligence (AI).
Q: How has the industry responded to this proposal?
A: The industry has shown a swift and positive response to the proposal. It recognizes that this step could accelerate the widespread adoption of the UPI digital platform across the country.
Q: Which countries is India engaging with regarding UPI linkage?
A: India is currently engaged in discussions with several countries, including Japan, to establish UPI linkage. This is in addition to existing arrangements with countries like Singapore and the United Arab Emirates.
Q: What purpose does linking UPI with other countries' payment platforms serve?
A: Linking UPI with other countries' instant payment platforms will facilitate quick, secure, and cost-effective cross-border fund transfers.
Q: What are "conversational payments" on UPI?
A: "Conversational payments" refer to a method of making payments within the Unified Payments Interface (UPI) platform by interacting with artificial intelligence (AI) powered systems. In this context, users engage in natural language conversations with AI systems to initiate, authorize, and complete payment transactions. Instead of manually inputting transaction details, users can communicate their payment intentions to the AI system through written or spoken language. The AI system processes the instructions and carries out the payment on behalf of the user. This approach aims to enhance the user experience by providing a more intuitive and interactive way of conducting financial transactions. Initially, the feature will be available in languages like Hindi and English, with plans to expand its language support to include other Indian languages in the future.
Q: How is the industry viewing the incorporation of AI in UPI?
A: The industry sees the integration of AI as a significant leap forward for India's payment ecosystem. It envisions that AI-powered conversational payments will provide customers with seamless and convenient payment solutions.
Q: How does the introduction of AI in UPI relate to the "Make in India" initiative?
A: The introduction of AI-based conversational payments aligns with the "Make in India" initiative, which aims to promote domestic innovation. This step showcases the potential for Indian solutions to gain global recognition and highlights India's leadership in the digital payments domain.
Q: What benefits are expected from introducing conversational payments?
A: Introducing conversational payments through AI is anticipated to create a payment system that is user-friendly and easy to use. This move is expected to speed up the adoption of the UPI platform across the nation.
Q: How does UPI rank internationally among payment systems?
A: UPI has gained international recognition as one of the world's most efficient and advanced payment systems. This recognition was reaffirmed during the recent meeting of finance ministers and governors from the Group of Twenty countries.
