New Delhi, India – Prime Minister Narendra Modi welcomed Heads of State, Heads of Government, delegates, and innovators from over 100 nations to the AI Impact Summit 2026, describing the event as a defining moment in human history. The Summit, held this week, saw thousands of young people exploring AI innovations across exhibition halls, making it one of the largest and most democratised gatherings on artificial intelligence in the world.
“India brings scale and energy to everything it does and this Summit was no exception,” Modi said. “Their curiosity made this the largest and most democratised AI summit in the world. I see this as an important moment in India’s development journey, because a mass movement for AI innovation and adoption has truly taken off.”
Modi noted that artificial intelligence represents a technological shift comparable to fire, writing, electricity, and the internet, but with changes unfolding in weeks rather than decades. “AI is making machines intelligent, but it is even more a force multiplier for human intent. Making AI human-centric instead of machine-centric is vital,” he said. At the Summit, he said human well-being was placed at the centre of global AI discussions under the principle of ‘Sarvajana Hitaya, Sarvajana Sukhaya’ – welfare and happiness for all.
The Prime Minister pointed to India’s efforts in ensuring technology serves people, citing initiatives like digital payments through UPI and COVID-19 vaccination campaigns that reach everyone. He said the same spirit was visible in innovations across agriculture, security, assistance for people with disabilities, and tools supporting multilingual populations.
Several AI applications in India were highlighted. The AI-powered digital assistant ‘Sarlaben’, launched by the Indian dairy cooperative AMUL, now provides real-time guidance to 3.6 million dairy farmers, mostly women, in their own languages about cattle health and productivity. Another platform, Bharat VISTAAR, offers multilingual inputs to farmers with information on weather, market prices, and other critical data.
Modi stressed that humans should never become mere data points for machines. He introduced the MANAV framework for human-centric AI governance: Moral and Ethical Systems, Accountable Governance, National Sovereignty, Accessible and Inclusive, and Valid and Legitimate. “MANAV, which means human, offers principles that anchor AI in human values in the 21st century,” he said.
Addressing global risks from generative AI, such as deepfakes and disinformation, Modi called for shared standards for watermarking and source verification. India has already required clear labelling of synthetically generated content. He also urged AI systems to include safeguards for children and promote responsible, family-guided engagement.
“Technology yields its greatest benefit when shared, rather than guarded as a strategic asset. Open platforms can help millions of youth contribute to making technology safer and more human-centric. This collective intelligence is humanity’s greatest strength. AI must evolve as a global common good,” Modi said.
The Prime Minister highlighted the transformative potential of AI for employment and innovation, predicting new professions will emerge as humans and intelligent systems co-create and co-evolve. He stressed that India’s youth, skilled through extensive national programmes, would be the drivers of the AI age.
India is building a robust AI infrastructure under the India AI Mission, deploying thousands of GPUs and creating a national AI Repository to democratise access to datasets and models. Modi said the country’s approach covers the full AI value chain, from semiconductors and data infrastructure to startups and applied research. “Solutions that succeed in India can serve humanity everywhere. That is why our invitation to the world is: Design and develop in India. Deliver to the world. Deliver to humanity.”
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