What Happened
- India is set to host the AI Impact Summit 2026 from February 16-20 at Bharat Mandapam, New Delhi — the fourth in a series of global AI governance summits and the first to be held in the Global South.
- Over 35,000 registrations from more than 100 countries have been received, with 15-20 heads of government, over 50 ministers, and 40+ CEOs of major global and Indian technology companies expected to attend.
- Confirmed speakers include global technology leaders such as Sundar Pichai, Sam Altman, Jensen Huang, and Bill Gates.
- India aims to use the summit to position itself as a shaper of global AI governance, promote inclusive AI development, and secure a larger share of the global AI economy — framed around the principles of "People, Planet, and Progress."
- The summit will cover 500+ sessions with participation from 500+ startups.
Static Topic Bridges
Global AI Summit Series — From Safety to Impact
The AI Impact Summit 2026 is the fourth installment in an evolving series of international AI governance meetings. The progression from "safety" to "action" to "impact" reflects how the global discourse has broadened from frontier AI risks to practical deployment and equitable access.
- AI Safety Summit, Bletchley Park, UK (November 1-2, 2023): First global AI summit; focused almost entirely on risks from frontier AI systems; produced the Bletchley Declaration signed by 28 countries including the US, China, and EU
- AI Seoul Summit, South Korea (May 21-22, 2024): Expanded participation to include industry, academia, and civil society; focused on AI safety commitments from leading companies
- AI Action Summit, Paris, France (February 10-11, 2025): Drew 1,000+ participants from 100+ countries; shifted focus to concrete commitments on governance, economic impact, and societal implications
- AI Impact Summit, New Delhi, India (February 16-20, 2026): First in the Global South; focuses on how AI is applied on the ground, who benefits, and how developing economies participate in the AI ecosystem
Connection to this news: By hosting the fourth summit, India has positioned itself at the centre of global AI governance discourse, with the deliberate framing around "impact" reflecting its advocacy for developing nations as AI users and builders, not mere consumers.
IndiaAI Mission — National AI Infrastructure Strategy
The IndiaAI Mission, approved by the Union Cabinet in March 2024 with a budgetary outlay of Rs 10,372 crore over five years, is India's comprehensive national programme to build AI compute infrastructure, develop indigenous models, and democratise AI access for startups, researchers, and government agencies.
- Seven pillars: IndiaAI Compute Capacity, IndiaAI Innovation Centre (IAIC), IndiaAI Datasets Platform, IndiaAI Application Development Initiative, IndiaAI FutureSkills, IndiaAI Startup Financing, Safe & Trusted AI
- Compute capacity: Rs 4,563 crore (44% of budget) earmarked for GPU infrastructure; over 38,000 GPUs onboarded at Rs 65 per hour (approximately one-third of global average cost)
- Target: Scale to 1,00,000 GPUs by end of 2026, up from current 38,000
- Subsidy structure: 100% compute subsidy for foundational AI model development; up to 40% for application building
- Goal: Enable 100 million Indians to use AI-powered services, especially in healthcare, agriculture, and education
Connection to this news: The summit serves as the international showcase for India's AI infrastructure ambitions under the IndiaAI Mission, particularly its approach of providing subsidised compute to bridge the gap between developed and developing nations in AI capability.
AI Governance — Global South Perspective
The hosting of the AI Impact Summit in India reflects the growing assertion of Global South nations in shaping AI governance norms. Developing countries argue that current AI governance frameworks, largely designed by advanced economies, prioritise safety and regulation over access, affordability, and equitable benefit-sharing.
- The OECD AI Principles (2019, updated 2024) were among the first international frameworks for AI governance; India is not an OECD member but participates in its AI policy work
- The UN Secretary-General's High-Level Advisory Body on AI (2023) recommended a global AI governance framework; India has been a vocal participant
- The EU AI Act (2024) is the world's first comprehensive AI regulation, using a risk-based classification approach
- India has opted against a dedicated AI regulation, preferring sector-specific guidance and voluntary compliance — a position aligned with the US approach and contrasting with the EU's prescriptive model
- The G20 New Delhi Leaders' Declaration (2023) called for "responsible, human-centric, trustworthy and responsible AI"
Connection to this news: By hosting the global summit, India aims to shift AI governance from a safety-centric framework (Bletchley model) to an impact-centric one that addresses AI access inequality, computing resource distribution, and development applications relevant to emerging economies.
Key Facts & Data
- AI Impact Summit 2026: February 16-20, Bharat Mandapam, New Delhi
- Fourth in the global AI summit series: Bletchley (2023), Seoul (2024), Paris (2025), New Delhi (2026)
- First global AI summit hosted in the Global South
- 35,000+ registrations from 100+ countries; 15-20 heads of government expected
- IndiaAI Mission: Rs 10,372 crore over 5 years (approved March 2024)
- India's installed GPU capacity: 38,000 (target: 1,00,000 by end of 2026)
- GPU cost under IndiaAI Mission: Rs 65/hour (~one-third of global average)
- 500+ sessions, 500+ startups participating