India will help Sri Lanka set up an AI lab for its Army, Defence Minister Rajnath Singh announced in Colombo.

Singh made the announcement while speaking aboard INS Udaygiri, an Indian naval ship docked in Colombo as part of a wider defence diplomacy push. He said India remains committed to strengthening the capabilities of Sri Lanka’s armed forces going forward.

According to Singh, the two countries will now work together to build this AI facility specifically for the Sri Lankan Army’s capability enhancement.

While exact technical details haven’t been shared yet, the lab is expected to help with data analysis, surveillance, logistics planning and faster decision-making, areas where militaries around the world are increasingly turning to AI tools.

This isn’t happening in isolation. During the same visit, India and Sri Lanka signed three separate agreements covering defence cooperation.

One deals with upgrading L-70 guns for the Sri Lankan Air Force. Another sets up cooperation between the National Cadet Corps of both countries. The third connects India’s National Defence College with its Sri Lankan counterpart.

Maritime security came up as a major talking point too. INS Udaygiri itself carried defence equipment to Sri Lanka, including spares for the Indra MK 2 radar meant for the Sri Lankan Air Force, components for the Sri Lankan naval ship SLNS Sayura, and inflatable targets used in naval exercises.

Sri Lankan officials responded warmly to the announcement. Minister Anil Jayantha Fernando thanked India for its continued support in training and capacity building for Sri Lanka’s forces, and said both countries hope to deepen naval cooperation through joint patrols and shared training exercises.

Singh’s visit, which started on September 8, comes at a time when India is trying to position itself as a steady security partner across the Indian Ocean region.

The AI lab, if it moves forward as planned, would mark one of the more forward-looking pieces of that relationship, shifting the focus from just equipment and training toward shared technology and digital infrastructure.

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