US Sends High-Level AI Delegation to India's Global South Summit

"Looking forward to leading the U.S. delegation to the AI Impact Summit in India this month," Kratsios posted on X, adding, "America is setting the gold standard for AI innovation and we want to share it with our global partners."

His post follows a report by POLITICO journalists Katherine Long and Cheyenne Haslett, which said that Kratsios will head to New Delhi with a US delegation to participate in the AI Impact Summit in India.

According to the report, "Kratsios will use the summit to provide an update on Trump's America AI Exports program, which was created by executive order in July to hook the world on the United State's tech stack."

The delegation will also include Undersecretary of State for Economic Affairs Jacob Helberg, Undersecretary of Commerce for International Trade William Kimmitt, and Undersecretary of Commerce for Industry and Security Jeffrey Kessler.

Kratsios further noted on X that "@UnderSecE, @TradeGov U/S Kimmitt, @BISgov U/S Kessler, & @skrishnan47 will join @USAmbIndia on Team USA in Delhi."

Highlighting the scale of the gathering, the report added, "The AI Impact Summit is one of the biggest world gatherings for industry leaders and policymakers in the sector," while noting that "the upcoming summit marks the first time that the event has been held in the Global South."

The India-AI Impact Summit will be held from February 16 to 20 at Bharat Mandapam, New Delhi, marking the first global AI summit to be hosted in the Global South.

Designed as a five-day programme covering policy, research, industry and public engagement, the Summit is anchored on three foundational pillars or "Sutras" People, Planet and Progress and is expected to bring together global leaders, policymakers, technology companies, innovators and experts to deliberate on AI's role in governance, innovation and sustainable development.

The India AI Impact Expo, spread across over 70,000 square metres, is expected to feature more than 300 exhibitors from 30 countries across over 10 thematic pavilions, showcasing AI's transition from research and pilots to large-scale deployment.

The Summit builds on India's development-focused approach to AI, aligned with the IndiaAI Mission and Digital India Initiative, with emphasis on translating global AI discussions into practical, people-centric outcomes.

It highlights AI's role in strengthening governance, improving public service delivery and supporting inclusive growth at scale, including applications in healthcare through remote diagnostics and telemedicine, agriculture via crop prediction and precision farming, education through personalised learning and language translation, finance through fraud detection and credit access, and governance through AI-assisted service delivery and judicial accessibility.

Recognising AI's strategic importance, the Government of India has prioritised development of AI compute infrastructure, indigenous models and large-scale capacity building to enable responsible and trusted adoption.

Deliberations at the Summit will be structured around seven "Chakras" Human Capital, Inclusion for Social Empowerment, Safe and Trusted AI, Resilience Innovation and Efficiency, Science, Democratizing AI Resources, and AI for Economic Growth and Social Good providing a framework for multilateral cooperation and shared learning.

These Chakras aim to align global AI strategies while addressing access to data and compute, workforce readiness, ethical governance, sustainability and inclusive economic growth.

The Summit programme includes Pre-Summit Events and Regional AI Conferences held across Meghalaya, Gujarat, Odisha, Madhya Pradesh, Uttar Pradesh, Rajasthan, Kerala and Telangana, whose outcomes will inform the Main Summit agenda.

The Main Summit has received over 700 proposals and will feature sessions across all seven Chakras, alongside the release of the AI Compendium on February 17, documenting real-world AI applications across priority sectors.

Flagship initiatives include AI for ALL: Global Impact Challenge, AI by HER: Global Impact Challenge, YUVAi: Global Youth Challenge, and a Research Symposium on AI and its Impact on February 18, while the AI Impact Expo will serve as a business-focused platform connecting innovators and investors.

Supported by core institutions including the Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology, IndiaAI Mission, Software Technology Parks of India and Digital India, the Summit aims to strengthen governance frameworks, promote responsible AI, expand skills and workforce readiness, and foster sustained partnerships among government, academia, startups and industry.

Expected outcomes include practical AI deployment across priority sectors, improved policy alignment and institutional coordination, and positioning India as a global hub for AI innovation and deployment, aligned with the vision of a digitally empowered and technology-driven India.

- ANI