There is greater need for basic intelligence than artificial intelligence, says Sonam Wangchuk

Wangchuk, who inspired Aamir Khan's character Phunsukh Wangdu in the film 3 Idiots, is the founding director of the Students' Educational and Cultural Movement of Ladakh (SECMOL). Wangchuk said that SEMCOL was founded in 1988 by students who were, "victims of an alien education system foisted on Ladakh." He has set up the campus in Ladakh that runs on solar energy and uses no fossil fuels for lighting, cooking, or heating. Talking about his courtship with innovation, he said, "I grew up in a place where innovation was all around and without it, life wouldn't have been possible." "I saw how in the trans-Himalayan cold desert of Ladakh where temperatures reach minus 30 degrees, our ancestors not only survived but also contributed to the thriving inter-mingled civilisations. So, the freezing winters were not something to fear but something to look forward to – the hard work of ploughing, farming, winnowing, and thrashing, became in the carrying out of these processes, a community festival," he added.