ET Most Innovative AI Product Awards 2026: A step-by-step guide to the nomination process

The conversation around artificial intelligence has changed. Boardrooms are no longer debating whether to adopt AI; they are asking which products are actually delivering results. The shift is from experimentation to execution, and with it comes a new standard for what it means to innovate.

The ET Most Innovative AI Product 2026 is built around this standard. Designed to identify AI products that go beyond technological promise and demonstrate measurable business impact, the awards offer India’s most credible platform for recognising innovation that works in the real world.

What nominees stand to gain

Recognition at the ET Most Innovative AI Product Awards is not a moment; it is a platform. From the point of nomination, participants receive coverage across ET platforms, putting their products in front of decision-makers, investors and industry leaders. Shortlisted nominees gain access to exclusive AI roundtables and a leadership network. Winners receive year-long PR, dedicated digital profiles, editorial features and official badges that carry weight far beyond the awards cycle. Critically, every submission is evaluated directly by named CXOs, founders, and AI domain experts, making the process itself a meaningful validation of your product's credibility.

A four-step process built for clarity
The nomination form is comprehensive, but each section is designed to draw out a specific dimension of your product's impact.

• STEP1 - choose your track and category

The awards recognise that innovation looks different at different scales. Participants select from three tracks- Startup, SME, or Enterprise and choose from more than 11 category options spanning industries and emerging AI applications. The track system ensures evaluation is contextually fair.

• Step 2: confirm your nomination

A per-category nomination fee formally locks in your submission and initiates the evaluation process.

• Step 3: submit your nomination

The nomination form is structured to surface the full picture of your AI product: the problem it solves, the capabilities that power it, its market differentiation, and its deployment outcomes. Strong submissions speak to outcomes, not just architecture.
The section that carries the most evaluative weight is the AI Layer, a dedicated segment examining the intelligence behind the product. This includes the model's architecture, the depth of its implementation, and most importantly, how AI directly enables tangible business results.

• Step 4: expert evaluation

Shortlisted nominations go through a rigorous two-stage review conducted by an official knowledge partner and an expert panel. Products are assessed on technical architecture, depth of AI deployment, scalability, market adoption, and future growth potential.

The ET Most Innovative AI Product Awards 2026 are not a catalogue of cutting-edge tools. They are a record of products that solved hard problems, at scale, in conditions that mattered.
If your product belongs in that record, the nomination process is where that case is made.

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