India-AI Impact Summit 2026: World leaders gather in New Delhi to shape the future of artificial intelligence

New Delhi is preparing to become the epicentre of global artificial intelligence dialogue as India hosts the India-AI Impact Summit 2026 from February 16 to 20. Organised under the visionary leadership of Prime Minister Narendra Modi, the Summit is set to bring together some of the most powerful voices in global governance, technology policy, and innovation under one roof, making it a landmark moment in the international AI calendar.

The Summit is built around three foundational Sutras: People, Planet, and Progress. These three pillars reflect India's philosophy toward AI cooperation, one that places human welfare, environmental responsibility, and inclusive development at the heart of technological advancement. Rather than treating artificial intelligence purely as an economic or strategic tool, India's framework invites the world to think about AI as a force that must serve humanity broadly and equitably.

At the personal invitation of Prime Minister Modi, an impressive roster of world leaders is scheduled to attend. The list reads like a who's who of global leadership. From Europe, France's President Emmanuel Macron, Spain's President Pedro Sanchez Perez-Castejon, Finland's Prime Minister Petteri Orpo, Greece's Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis, Croatia's Prime Minister Andrej Plenkovic, Estonia's President Alar Karis, Slovakia's President Peter Pellegrini, Serbia's President Aleksandar Vucic, Switzerland's President Guy Parmelin, and the Netherlands' Prime Minister Dick Schoof are all confirmed attendees. Liechtenstein will be represented by Hereditary Prince Alois.


From the Americas, Brazilian President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva will be present, alongside Bolivia's Vice President Edmand Lara Montano and Guyana's Vice President Dr. Bharrat Jagdeo. The Asia-Pacific region will be represented by Bhutan's Prime Minister Tshering Tobgay, Sri Lanka's President Anura Kumara Disanayaka, and Kazakhstan's Prime Minister Olzhas Bektenov. From Africa and the Indian Ocean, Mauritius' Prime Minister Dr. Navinchandra Ramgoolam and Seychelles' Vice President Sebastien Pillay will participate. The United Arab Emirates will send a high-profile representative in the form of Sheikh Khaled bin Mohamed bin Zayed Al Nahyan, the Crown Prince of Abu Dhabi.

Beyond heads of state and government, the Summit will see ministerial-level delegations arriving from over 45 countries, making the gathering a truly global forum rather than an exclusive club of the powerful. The United Nations Secretary General is also expected to join the deliberations, along with senior officials from several prominent international organizations. This breadth of participation underscores just how seriously the world is taking India's AI leadership moment.

India's choice to frame its Summit around the three Sutras is deliberate and strategic. At a time when conversations around AI are often dominated by concerns about job displacement, security risks, and technological inequality, New Delhi is positioning itself as a country that wants to steer global AI governance toward a more inclusive and sustainable model. The People Sutra centres the discussion on the human impact of AI. Planet acknowledges the environmental footprint of large-scale AI infrastructure. Progress signals ambition without abandoning responsibility.

The India-AI Impact Summit 2026 arrives at a pivotal moment. Nations are racing to set national AI strategies, multilateral frameworks are still taking shape, and the technology itself is evolving faster than most policy institutions can keep pace with. By gathering this many leaders in one city for five days of focused deliberation, India is making a clear statement: it intends to be not just a participant in shaping the AI era, but one of its principal architects.

As the world watches New Delhi this February, the conversations held at this Summit could help define the norms, principles, and cooperative frameworks that govern artificial intelligence for decades to come.

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