India AI Impact Summit 2026 – A Global Gathering for AI Progress
India AI Impact Summit 2026 will be inaugurated by Prime Minister Narendra Modi, taking place in New Delhi from February 15 to 20. This major expo is set to convene heads of state and senior executives from leading tech and multinational corporations, with India striving for a consensus declaration as a significant outcome.
Objectives of the Summit
The host nation, India, aims to foster global consensus on essential Artificial Intelligence (AI) matters, emphasising the inclusion and democratisation of AI resources. Confirmed participation from both the US and China marks an important step, considering their pivotal roles in the global AI narrative.
Confirmed Attendees
IT Secretary S Krishnan shared that confirmations have been received from influential figures, stating that several high-profile individuals will attend, including Bill Gates, Demis Hassabis (CEO of Google DeepMind), Dario Amodei (CEO of Anthropic), Shantanu Narayen (CEO of Adobe), Marc Benioff (CEO of Salesforce), Cristiano Amon (CEO of Qualcomm), and Raj Subramaniam (CEO of FedEx).
Key Expected Outcomes
Krishnan elaborated that the primary goal is to unite all stakeholders. He specified that achieving a consensus declaration would be a crucial deliverable.
The summit will strive to build consensus on key AI issues, contrasting with the previous summit focused on AI safety. This time, the emphasis is on the positive impacts of AI, ensuring inclusivity and access to resources. Krishnan highlighted the importance of a leaders’ declaration that supports these efforts.
Focus on Global Democratisation of AI
India AI Impact Summit 2026 is dedicated to advancing the democratisation of AI, bridging the AI divide, promoting local and indigenous AI solutions, and advocating for ‘AI for Good’ across various sectors, such as healthcare, agriculture, and governance. Another vital goal is to harmonise global AI governance standards with developing countries’ needs.
Working Groups and Themes
Seven working groups will spearhead the summit’s outcomes, each concentrating on specific themes: AI for economic growth and social benefit, inclusion and social empowerment, safe and trusted AI, human capital and science, democratising AI resources and resilience, as well as innovation and efficiency.
This summit is built upon the successes of past global initiatives, such as the Bletchley Park, Seoul, Paris, and Kigali AI summits.
Global Participation
Prominent leaders and industry representatives expected to attend include French President Emmanuel Macron, Brazilian President Lula da Silva, Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang, OpenAI CEO Sam Altman, and Intel CEO Lip-Bu Tan.
Krishnan noted that around 50 global CEOs and founders have confirmed their participation, with expectations that attendance will increase significantly post-holiday season. The summit is anticipated to feature representation from over 100 countries.
Numerous international leaders from across the globe are also set to participate, either at the head of state or ministerial level, with estimates suggesting 15-20 countries will be represented at the head of state level and more than 50 at the ministerial level.
India is also looking forward to substantial participation from the global south, including nations from Africa and Latin America.
Summit Events and Discussions
Prime Minister Modi will inaugurate the expo, host a dinner event—likely on February 18—and attend the opening ceremony, leaders’ plenary, and CEO roundtable on February 19, as stated by Krishnan.
Ongoing Initiatives with the US
Regarding India’s discussions with the US about joining the Pax Silica silicon supply chain initiative, Krishnan mentioned that dialogues are ongoing. He clarified that discussions are happening at multiple levels, including through the Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) and the National Security Advisor (NSA) level.
He added that aspects of this dialogue also involve the IT ministry, particularly concerning technical matters, making it a continual process.
