New Delhi: India will host the India–AI Impact Summit 2026 from February 16 to 20 in the national capital, positioning itself as a key convenor in global debates on the future of artificial intelligence. The event will be the first global AI summit hosted in the Global South, with over 100 countries participating through thematic working groups, according to a government release.
The summit is expected to draw 15–20 heads of government, over 50 international ministers, and more than 40 global and Indian CEOs, underlining India’s growing role in shaping technology governance. The discussions will be anchored around three guiding principles—People, Planet and Progress—which the government describes as the core “Sutras” for global cooperation on AI.
At the heart of the summit’s structure are seven thematic “Chakras”, or working groups, designed to translate these principles into policy and real-world outcomes. These cover human capital, social inclusion, safe and trusted AI, science, resilience and efficiency, democratisation of AI resources, and AI for economic development and social good.
Officials say the summit will focus on moving beyond broad principles to measurable outcomes across governance, innovation and sustainable development. India’s pitch is to frame AI not just as a growth engine, but as a tool for inclusive development, climate resilience and public service delivery.
On the domestic front, the government highlighted India’s expanding AI ecosystem, pointing to rapid growth in AI talent, rising investment in data infrastructure, and the scaling up of public digital platforms such as BHASHINI for multilingual governance and AI-driven farmer services.
The release also notes the push to establish the IndiaAI Safety Institute and a structured AI governance framework to address risks around safety, bias and accountability.
In infrastructure, India is building out sovereign AI compute capacity, expanding access to GPUs and supercomputing resources, and offering subsidised compute to researchers and startups—moves aimed at democratising access to AI and reducing dependence on overseas platforms.
Sectorally, the government projects AI to drive gains across agriculture, healthcare, education and justice delivery, while the AI-powered technology sector is expected to generate around $280 billion in revenues in 2025, reflecting the scale of economic ambition attached to the technology.
By hosting the summit, India is seeking to position itself as a bridge between advanced economies and the developing world on AI governance—pushing a model that links innovation with public purpose, and global standards with local development needs.