India, France frame AI Impact Summit as global south milestone
Washington: India and France presented the upcoming AI Impact Summit in New Delhi as a turning point in global artificial intelligence governance, with a focus on inclusion, development, and real-world outcomes.
Participating in a panel discussion at a CSIS conference here, Indian Ambassador to the US Vinay M Kwatra and French Ambassador Laurent Bili said the February summit in New Delhi will build on earlier global AI meetings while expanding the agenda to reflect Global South priorities.
Kwatra said the summit marks the first time a major global AI gathering is being held in a Global South country.
“This is of great consequence,” he said, adding that the summit aims to reflect how AI can benefit societies beyond advanced economies.
He said India has structured the summit around three core themes — people, planet, and progress — with an emphasis on democratizing AI access.
“The idea is to ensure AI is available, accessible, and scalable for people at large,” Kwatra said.
Bili said France and India are continuing cooperation launched at the Paris AI Action Summit in 2025, which shifted global discussions toward practical applications and investment.
“We want to go further on implementation,” Bili said, pointing to planned side events in Delhi focused on sustainable and public-interest AI.
Kwatra said the summit’s focus on “impact” reflects a deliberate shift from abstract regulation to deployment and outcomes.
“The impact part is essential,” he said. “Societies must move toward implementation.”
The summit is expected to feature an AI expo with hundreds of exhibitors, research symposiums, CEO roundtables, and a leaders’ declaration. Kwatra said the goal is a “full-stack AI summit” spanning research, industry, and governance.
Both ambassadors said the summit will also aim to avoid fragmented global AI rules, while respecting national approaches.
Bili said Paris helped catalyze major AI investments in France and across Europe, including large commitments to computing infrastructure and research.
Kwatra said India is seeing similar momentum, with major global technology companies investing heavily in AI infrastructure, compute capacity, and energy.
He said India’s large population and rapid adoption of digital platforms position it as a key testing ground for AI deployment at scale.
The AI Impact Summit will take place in New Delhi in February 2026, following earlier summits in the United Kingdom, South Korea, and France.