India AI Summit Draws Global Leaders, 100+ CEOs Amid AI Push

Addressing the media, Minister Vaishnaw said the summit is expected to attract participation from nearly 100 countries, with 15 heads of state and government already confirmed.

The industry response has been equally strong, with more than 100 global CEOs expected to participate in the AI summit.

Vaishnaw noted that Prime Minister Narendra Modi recently met with key stakeholders across the AI value chain, including model developers, application builders, and infrastructure providers.

He said this engagement showcased how India is progressing across all five layers of AI architecture, with particular strength emerging at the application layer.

"What's being noted is the systematic manner in which India has developed its AI ecosystem. Very recently, the Prime Minister interacted with the people who are developing the models, the people who are developing the applications and the people who are setting up the infrastructure," he said.

"AI architecture has five layers. The app layer - people who interacted with PM yesterday it was very encouraging that the work that they have taken is such a systematic reward and that the strength that our IT industry has had over several decades now that strength is being put to providing AI solutions rather than the old model of having software development."

Vaishnaw asserted that Indian companies have already developed over 200 AI models, most of which are small, focused, and sector-specific, designed to solve clearly defined real-world problems.

"When they met Prime Minister, they shared that they have developed more than 200 models so far, which are very focused, very small, and totally oriented towards solving the problems of one particular sector. I think that is the big learning that so many people today express, that the real value will come from the deployment of AI, getting those productivity gains, getting those efficiency gains," the Union minister said.

After meeting AI startups recently, Prime Minister Narendra Modi interacted with CEOs and experts in Artificial Intelligence (AI) at his official residence here in the national capital earlier this week.

Aligned with the upcoming IndiaAI Impact Summit to be held from February 16-20, the interaction was aimed to foster strategic collaborations, showcase AI innovations, and accelerate India's AI mission goals. During the interaction, the CEOs expressed strong support for the goal of becoming self-sufficient in AI. They also acknowledged the efforts and resources the government is putting in to position India as a leader in AI on the global stage.

- ANI