India Poised to Become Global AI & Cybersecurity Backbone, Says Industry Leader

Speaking to ANI on the sidelines of the event, Anirban Mukherji, the Founder and CEO of miniOrange, a cybersecurity company, shared insights into the significance of the ongoing summit.

He asserted that India is uniquely positioned to lead in this space due to its massive talent pool. Mukherji said, "India only only place in the world which is capable of being the cyber security and AI backbone of the world can be India only because there are millions of software engineers here."

He emphasised that the initiative taken at the government and cabinet levels represents a major step for the country. Mukherji noted that the scale of the event, which brought together leaders and speakers from across the globe, underscores India's rising influence in the technology sector.

Mukherji stated that the summit provides a great benefit by fostering a deeper understanding of artificial intelligence as a "way of living." He observed that the excitement surrounding these developments extends beyond national borders.

He shared a personal anecdote related to his son. "My son who is studying in Canada, said he is very excited that at the government level, at the cabinet level, such a step has happened where there are so many countries," he said.

The discussion at the summit also focused on the socio-economic impacts of AI, particularly regarding employment. Mukherji pointed out that the technology is expected to create numerous job opportunities.

The India AI Impact Expo 2026 is being held from February 16-20, alongside the India AI Impact Summit, at Bharat Mandapam. The Expo will serve as a national demonstration of AI in action, where policy meets practice, innovation meets scale, and technology meets the everyday citizen.

Spread across 10 arenas covering more than 70,000 square metres, the Expo will bring together global technology firms, startups, academia and research institutions, Union Ministries, State Governments, and international partners. The Expo will also feature 13 country pavilions, showcasing international collaboration in the AI ecosystem. These include pavilions from Australia, Japan, Russia, the United Kingdom, France, Germany, Italy, the Netherlands, Switzerland, Serbia, Estonia, Tajikistan, and Africa.

The Expo will host over 300 curated exhibition pavilions and live demonstrations, organised into three thematic chakras: People, Planet, and Progress. In addition, the Expo will feature over 600 high-potential startups, many of them developing globally relevant, population-scale solutions. These startups will demonstrate working solutions that are already deployed in real-world settings.

The India AI Impact Expo 2026 is expected to attract over 2.5 lakh visitors, including international delegates. The event aims to foster new partnerships and create business opportunities within the global AI ecosystem.

Over 500 sessions will be organised, featuring more than 3250 visionary speakers and panel members. These sessions will focus on acknowledging the transformative impact of AI across sectors and deliberating on future actions to ensure that Artificial Intelligence benefits every global citizen.

- ANI