PM Modi Welcomes Global Tech Leaders as India AI Impact Summit 2026 Begins in New Delhi

New Delhi is set to host one of the world’s most significant global dialogues on artificial intelligence with the India AI Impact Summit 2026 and the India AI Impact Expo, where Prime Minister Narendra Modi will inaugurate the Expo at Bharat Mandapam in the national capital.

Ahead of the Summit, the Prime Minister welcomed delegates arriving in India and highlighted the country’s rapid strides in science and technology and the role of youth in driving innovation.

The India AI Impact Expo 2026, scheduled from February 16 to 20 alongside the Summit, is envisioned as a national showcase of artificial intelligence in action, bringing together policy, innovation, and large-scale implementation on one platform.

The Expo will be spread across 10 arenas covering more than 70,000 square metres and will host global technology companies, startups, academia, research institutions, Union Ministries, State Governments, and international partners.

An unprecedented roster of Presidents, Prime Ministers, Crown Princes, and leading technology thinkers from Silicon Valley and beyond are expected to participate in discussions during the Summit, which is being positioned as the first international AI summit hosted in the Global South.

Thirteen country pavilions will underline international collaboration in the AI ecosystem, with participation from Australia, Japan, Russia, the United Kingdom, France, Germany, Italy, the Netherlands, Switzerland, Serbia, Estonia, Tajikistan and African nations.

More than 300 curated exhibition pavilions and live demonstrations will be organised across three thematic "chakras" - People, Planet, and Progress - reflecting AI’s wide-ranging impact across sectors.

Over 600 high-potential startups are set to participate, many of which are already deploying globally relevant and population-scale AI solutions in real-world settings.

The event is expected to draw more than 2.5 lakh visitors, including international delegates, while over 500 sessions featuring more than 3,250 speakers and panellists will be conducted during the Expo and Summit.

At the core of the Summit is India’s vision for sovereign AI under the IndiaAI Mission, with the unveiling of 12 indigenous foundation models developed by homegrown startups and consortia.

These models are trained on vast Indian datasets and tailored to the nation’s 22 official languages.

Innovations from Sarvam AI’s multilingual reasoning engines, BharatGen’s sector-specific tools from IIT Bombay, Gnani AI’s voice-first breakthroughs, and Fractal Analytics’ reasoning models are aimed at democratising AI across agriculture, healthcare, education and governance.

Seven working groups, co-chaired by representatives from the Global North and South, are expected to present actionable proposals including shared compute resources, AI commons for the public good, and compendia of use cases for the developing world.

The Expo will function as a sprawling showcase of real-world applications, from precision farming to accessible education, reinforcing India’s ambition to shape an AI future that is inclusive, responsible, and impactful.

With 800 million internet users, a booming startup ecosystem, and strong digital public infrastructure, the country is positioning itself as a bridge between innovation and impact.

For India, which is projected to see its AI market surpass $17 billion by 2027, the Summit represents a declaration of intent on the global stage.

As PM Modi has said, "We are at the dawn of the AI age that will shape the course of humanity. Some people worry about machines becoming superior in intelligence to humans. But no one holds the key to our collective future and shared destiny other than us humans."

(With inputs from ANI)