Shyam Saran, former Foreign Secretary, just dropped a heavy insight: AI’s real battleground isn’t software; it’s chips, water, electricity, and engineers. While the U.S. and China race for supremacy with opposing strategies (closed vs. open), India’s infrastructure investment still lags. The real threat? A new digital divide where the Global South gets locked out. Saran warns: unless we push for truly global rules; not just U.S.-China duopoly; AI could deepen inequality, not uplift it. And if we ignore the societal risks; deepfakes, cyberattacks, governance breakdowns; even the smartest tech won’t save a fractured society. The clock’s ticking. Will India build its own AI backbone; or become a dependent spectator?