Virtual Assistance by NIC (VANI)

VANI is a conversational AI framework developed by NIC, enabling multilingual chatbot services and seamless user interactions across government interfaces. With over 14 crore hits in FY 2024–25, it supports a layered architecture:

• Communication Layer – Manages interactions between front-end and back-end AI engines.
• BYOB/Business Logic Layer – Enables user profile management, intent design, orchestration, scheduling, logging, monitoring, and agent hand-off.

VANI also integrates with AI Panini for real-time text translation across 22 Indic languages and AI Shruti for voice-based interaction in 9 Indian languages. The framework powers chatbots in 11+ government projects, including legal aid (LESA) and transport services (e.g., SARATHI for driving license bookings). VANI is a copyrighted platform of NIC and offered as a paid service under NICSI.

Key Differentiators

• Supports multilingual voice and text via integration with other AI services
• Modular and layered chatbot framework for scalability
• Seamless handoff to human agents with queue and session management
• Copyrighted framework with in-house conversational AI Agent
• Adopted in high-volume, citizen-facing services like transport and legal awareness