Mumbai, September 2, 2026: Dell Technologies has launched “uDaan: Empowering India’s Future Workforce”, a national skilling and innovation programme aimed at preparing 23,000 young people for careers in artificial intelligence (AI), cloud computing and electronics manufacturing.
The programme is being delivered through a public-private consortium comprising FITT-IIT Delhi, Learning Links Foundation, and Generation India Foundation. It will cover 100 Industrial Training Institutes (ITIs) and 90 Higher Education Institutes (HEIs) across five technology corridors: Delhi NCR, Bengaluru, Hyderabad, Chennai and Pune.
FITT-IIT Delhi will design and certify four industry-aligned curricula covering AI Application Development, Cloud Development, Assembly Line Operations and Field Technician roles. The curricula have been co-validated by more than 40 employers across technology, electronics manufacturing, Global Capability Centres and hyperscalers. Learning Links Foundation will lead HEI delivery and institutional onboarding, while Generation India Foundation will oversee ITI implementation and employment linkages.
The programme includes employer connections for job placement, entrepreneurship and apprenticeship opportunities. In its first year, uDaan aims to support the creation of 25 deep-tech startups among HEI learners and 10 micro-enterprises among ITI learners through FITT-IIT Delhi’s innovation ecosystem, bootcamps and technical mentorship.
More than 2,000 hours of Dell employee mentoring will also be provided across the five corridors, covering career guidance, AI awareness and interview preparation.
Manish Gupta, President and Managing Director, Dell Technologies India, said, "India's AI economy is creating roles faster than employers are able to fill them, and those roles require new skillsets. uDaan is how Dell is helping build pathways from education to employment at scale, in partnership with institutions that serve millions of young Indians. We believe skilling is a critical enabler of AI adoption, workforce readiness and long-term innovation and economic viability. This is technology driving human progress. This is Dell's commitment to India's future"
Aligned with Skill India 2.0, NEP 2020, Make in India and Digital India, uDaan is designed as a replicable model, with state DVET and DTE officials involved from the first year. The programme will track employment and retention at three, six, 12 and 24 months after placement. Learners opting for alternatives to direct employment will have access to apprenticeship pathways through NATS and NAPS government portals.
Dell said the initiative builds on its earlier community skilling efforts in India. Over the past decade, its school innovation programmes have reached more than 50 million beneficiaries. Since FY23, its Solar Community Hubs have reached 2.67 million beneficiaries across 18 districts and 14 states.
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