India to Host Global AI Impact Summit 2026 to Bridge Technology Divide
The summit’s structure is anchored in three guiding “Sutras”—People, Planet, and Progress—which focus on human service, environmental safeguarding, and inclusive growth.
RMN Digital Events Desk
New Delhi | January 11, 2026
NEW DELHI — The Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology (MeitY) and the IndiaAI Mission have officially unveiled the vision and progress for the upcoming India AI Impact Summit 2026 (February 16-20), an initiative dedicated to “Democratizing AI and Bridging the AI Divide”. The summit aims to ensure that Artificial Intelligence serves as a horizontal, enabling technology that supports the development of humanity as a whole.
During a media briefing in New Delhi, MeitY Secretary S. Krishnan highlighted a growing international concern: the risk of AI power becoming concentrated within a few specific geographies and a limited number of companies. To counter this, the summit will advocate for equitable global access to critical AI infrastructure, including compute, models, and data. Such access is intended to empower countries to develop context-specific solutions for sectors like healthcare, agriculture, education, and manufacturing.
The Sutra-Chakra Framework
The summit’s structure is anchored in three guiding “Sutras”—People, Planet, and Progress—which focus on human service, environmental safeguarding, and inclusive growth. These ideals are operationalized through seven thematic “Chakras” or Working Groups:
- Human Capital: Focused on reskilling the workforce for an AI-driven future.
- Inclusion for Social Empowerment: Ensuring AI systems are inclusive by design and locally relevant.
- Safe and Trusted AI: Developing transparent and accountable governance frameworks.
- Resilience, Innovation, and Efficiency: Prioritizing sustainable, frugal AI for resource-constrained areas.
- Science: Expanding research ecosystems, particularly in the Global South.
- Democratizing AI Resources: Focusing on fair access to datasets and foundational models.
- AI for Economic Growth and Social Good: Scaling applications across vital public sectors.
According to the government, these themes were developed through months of extensive global consultations, including brainstorming sessions in cities like Tokyo, Oslo, Paris, and New York, and over 600 citizen responses via the MyGov platform.
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Global Momentum and Flagship Initiatives
Preparation for the 2026 summit is already well underway, with approximately 300 pre-summit events organized to build momentum. Of these, 57 have been held internationally across more than 25 countries.
The summit will feature several high-profile global challenges, including YUVAi, AI by HER, and AI for All, which have collectively drawn over 15,000 registrations from 135 countries. Other key highlights scheduled for the event at Bharat Mandapam include:
- UDAAN: A global pitch fest for startups to connect with investors.
- India AI Tinkerpreneur: A challenge showcasing projects from students in grades 6 through 12.
- AI Impact Expo: A showcase of global, state, and enterprise innovations.
- Research Symposium: Featuring frontier AI research from Africa, Asia, and Latin America.
Media Participation
The government has officially opened media accreditation for both domestic and foreign journalists to cover the summit’s journey and the main event at Bharat Mandapam, New Delhi. Interested parties can apply through the summit’s official website as India prepares to demonstrate how AI can be deployed responsibly and at scale.
Think of the AI Divide as a massive library where only a few wealthy neighborhoods have the keys to the building and the ability to read the books. The India AI Impact Summit 2026 is like an international effort to print books in every local language, build libraries in every town, and ensure everyone has the “key”—the skills and tools—to use that knowledge to improve their own lives.
