The summit arrives at a time when India is positioning itself as a major hub for AI investment. Tech giants including Alphabet’s Google, Microsoft, and Amazon have collectively pledged $68 billion for AI and cloud infrastructure in the country through 2030. Indian officials see the summit as an opportunity to elevate the voice of developing nations in global AI governance and highlight the country’s approach to human-centric technology deployment.
“The theme of the summit is welfare for all, happiness for all, reflecting our shared commitment to harnessing Artificial Intelligence for human-centric progress,” India’s Prime Minister Narendra Modi said on X.
Key speakers include Sundar Pichai, Sam Altman, Dario Amodei, Mukesh Ambani, and Demis Hassabis, who are scheduled to speak on Thursday. On the same day, Modi will share the stage with French President Emmanuel Macron, highlighting India’s diplomatic push alongside its technological ambitions.
Large banners featuring Modi’s portrait have gone up along Delhi’s main roads, signaling the government’s high-profile promotion of the event. India, which has yet to produce a globally dominant foundational AI model comparable to U.S. or Chinese technologies, is emphasizing large-scale adoption and application-led innovation over frontier-scale model development. According to India’s recent Economic Survey, the government should focus on practical deployment rather than chasing “mega-models” at the cutting edge.
Domestic AI adoption is already significant: by late 2025, India had more than 72 million daily ChatGPT users, making it OpenAI’s largest market. However, this rapid adoption has raised concerns about job disruption in the $283 billion IT sector. Investment bank Jefferies projects that call centers alone could face a 50% revenue decline from AI integration by 2030.
The India summit is expected to attract over 250,000 visitors and host more than 300 exhibitors across a 70,000-square-meter expo at the $300 million Bharat Mandapam convention complex. The influx of international delegates has sent luxury hotel prices soaring, with suites at the Taj Palace reportedly climbing from around $2,200 per night to more than $33,000. Anticipating traffic congestion, India’s Supreme Court issued a circular allowing advocates to appear via video conferencing during the summit week.
Previous editions of the AI Impact Summit, held in Bletchley Park (2023), Seoul (2024), and Paris (2025), largely focused on voluntary corporate pledges and governance commitments, though critics argued they produced few enforceable outcomes. India’s hosting signals a push for a more inclusive, globally representative AI discussion, highlighting the opportunities—and challenges—of large-scale AI deployment in a rapidly developing economy.
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