DRONA 2.0: Indian Armed Forces Launch Multimodal AI

The Indian Armed Forces have launched DRONA 2.0, a new multimodal generative AI platform. This system was inaugurated at the Defence Services Staff College in Wellington, Tamil Nadu. What's interesting is this platform integrates indigenous artificial intelligence into military education. It was formally launched by Lieutenant General Manish Erry, the Commandant of DSSC, on August 18, 2026. DRONA 2.0 builds on an earlier version, DRONA 1.0, which was introduced in June 2025. The new system includes multimodal capabilities and an indigenous large language model stack. At its core is Sarvam AI’s Sarvam 105B large language model, combined with open-source models. This Sarvam 105B model is a part of India’s push for sovereign AI under the IndiaAI Mission. The platform offers tools like advanced reasoning, image recognition, speech-to-text, and automated translation. It can also generate podcasts and presentations. Officials describe DRONA 2.0 as the first multimodal GPT of its kind in the Indian Armed Forces. The system underwent extensive security audits before deployment. The bottom line is this advancement aims to significantly aid faculty and students at DSSC in accessing information and furthering research in defense and strategic studies.