The countdown is nearly over. In minutes, India AI Impact Summit 2026 opens at Bharat Mandapam in New Delhi with a five-day global giants’ gathering that blends high-level diplomacy with hands-on innovation. But this isn’t just another tech summit.

India hosts the AI India Impact Summit 2026 from February 16-20 with the AI Expo running through February 20. The global conversation on artificial intelligence is shifting — geographically, politically, and philosophically from Silicon Valley and Brussels to the Global South — and from questions of safety to questions of impact.

This signals that AI governance must address not just risks to the wealthy nations that build the technology, but opportunities for the billions who will live with its consequences.

Ahead of the summit on February 15, UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres in an exclusive interview with PTI said, “I strongly congratulate India for organizing this summit. It’s absolutely essential that AI develops itself to the benefit of everybody, everywhere and that countries in the Global South are part of the benefits of AI.”

The main summit programming takes place on February 19 and 20. February 19 begins with the formal opening ceremony by Prime Minister Narendra Modi who will then deliver keynote address and a CEO roundtable with world leaders.

The summit is broadly built on three foundational principles called “Sutras” — People, Plant, Progress. These expand into seven thematic working groups termed as “Chakras” focusing on areas – human capital, inclusion for social empowerment, safe and trusted AI, resilience, innovation and efficiency, science, democratizing AI resources and AI for economic growth and social good.  

Global South Takes Center Stage

The India AI Impact Summit 2026, announced by Narendra Modi at the France AI Action Summit, continues the series of international high-profile AI summits that began with the UK AI Safety Summit (November 2023), followed by the AI Seoul Summit (May 2024), and the France AI Action Summit (February 2025)., and the Global AI Summit in Africa (April 2025).

While earlier summits focused on AI “Safety” and “Action,” India is centering “Impact” — a signal that developing nations want governance frameworks that prioritize access and development, not just regulation and risk mitigation. According to a Washington-based law firm Crowell & Moring, “India’s pageantry will take on a slightly new flavor, however, as it looks to shift the AI conversation from the AI “Safety” and “Action” themes of the earlier summits to one focused on “Impact.”

It added that AI Impact Summit will be India’s defining opportunity to shape the direction of the global narrative on AI governance.

India AI Impact Summit 2026: Who are the Power Players?

The event will bring together policymakers, tech leaders, industry experts, innovators, researchers, and startups to debate governance frameworks and showcase working AI solutions.

India will host tech influential leaders Google and Alphabet chief Sundar Pichai, Microsoft Co-founder and Gates Foundation Co-chair Bill Gates, Microsoft President & Vice Chair Brad Smith, Meta Chief AI Officer Alexandr Wang OpenAI CEO Sam Altman and Anthropic Chief Executive Officer Dario Amodei.

The political guest list reveals geopolitical complexity. French President Emmanuel Macron represents European Union interests, while Russian President Vladimir Putin’s senior aide Maxim Oreshkin’s attendance is notable given Russia-Ukraine tensions and Western sanctions – emphasizing India’s strategy to maintaining ties with both the West and Russia.

Indian industry leaders such as Reliance Industries Chairman Mukesh Ambani, Infosys Co-founder Nandan Nilekani, Tata Group Chairperson N. Chandrasekaran, Tata Consultancy Services CEO K.Krithivasan, representing India’s massive IT services sector eyeing AI integration, and Adani Airport Holdings Director Jeet Adani, investing in AI-powered infrastructure.

However, founder and CEO Jensen Huang who was anticipated as big attraction and supposed to address media on February 17 has cancelled his visit due to “unforeseen circumstances.”, Reuters reported, citing the company’s Indian media agency MSL.

India AI Impact Summit 2026: Scale and Scope

The summit will feature a number of activities including high-level plenaries, global hackathons, and innovation challenges and AI Expo. The first-ever international AI summit hosted in global South is expected to draw participation from over 100 countries, including 15-20 government heads, 50 plus ministers, more than 40 CEOs and 40+ CEOs among 500 prominent figures from the global AI ecosystem.

The AI Expo, spread across 70,000 square meters, features over 300 exhibitors from more than 30 countries. Expo & Demonstrations: Over 300 curated exhibition pavilions, more than 600 startups, and 13 country-level pavilions.

Sessions: Over 500 sessions involving more than 3,250 speakers and panel members.

Country pavilions from Australia, Japan, the UK, France, and Germany make one thing clear: this isn’t just a developing-world gathering. Wealthy nations know their AI future depends on partnerships with countries that have what they need — the data, the talent, the market scale of India and other emerging economies. 

India AI Impact Summit 2026: What it Really Means?

Beyond speeches and photo opportunities, the AI India Impact Summit 2026 is about power: who controls AI development, who sets its rules, and who benefits from the technology that may define this century.

India is positioning itself as the bridge between the Global North and Global South, leveraging its $1.25 billion India AI Mission launched in 2024 to build compute infrastructure, support startups, and develop indigenous AI models.