World leaders and top executives from prominent artificial intelligence companies have convened in New Delhi for a significant AI summit happening this week.
The India AI Impact Summit, taking place from February 16 to February 20, is a platform where policymakers, technology experts, and scholars gather to deliberate on topics such as AI governance, investment strategies, and the societal implications of this technology. Prime Minister Narendra Modi of India emphasized the summit’s theme of “welfare for all, happiness for all” in a recent social media post, highlighting a commitment to progress centered on humanity.
Distinguished speakers at the event include Sundar Pichai, CEO of Alphabet, Sam Altman, CEO of OpenAI, Dario Amodei, CEO of Anthropic, Demis Hassabis, CEO of Google DeepMind, and Mukesh Ambani, Chairman of Reliance. A significant moment during the summit will be on Thursday when Modi shares the stage with French President Emmanuel Macron, who is in India for a bilateral visit, according to a report by Reuters.
India is actively seeking AI investments, evidenced by commitments from major players like Google, Microsoft, and Amazon totaling $68 billion for AI and cloud infrastructure projects until 2030. Notably, India has emerged as the largest user market for OpenAI, boasting over 72 million daily ChatGPT users as highlighted in the Reuters report.
Despite the promise AI holds, its rapid adoption poses a threat to jobs in India’s $283 billion IT sector, particularly impacting call centers and tech support roles, as outlined by Reuters. The human capital working group at the summit cautioned about the risks of automation leading to the displacement of certain job segments and exacerbating socio-economic disparities.
This summit marks the fourth in a series of international AI gatherings, following previous meetings in Bletchley Park, UK (2023), Seoul (2024), and Paris (2025). Past summits mainly focused on safety commitments and governance principles, with critics noting a lack of actionable outcomes. The current summit is expected to draw over 250,000 attendees and 300 exhibitors to the expansive 70,000-square-meter expo complex.
Conversations at the summit will delve into addressing concerns surrounding AI safety, specifically in preventing real-world harm, as highlighted in an AFP report. Recent incidents have underscored risks associated with AI, such as lawsuits against OpenAI for alleged chatbot contributions to suicides and the global apprehension towards AI tools capable of creating harmful deepfakes.
