India is set to host the Global AI Impact Summit, marking a significant milestone in the country’s ambition to position itself as a leading global technology hub. Union Minister for Electronics and IT Ashwini Vaishnaw announced that the summit, previously held in countries such as the UK, South Korea and France, will now take place in India, reflecting the country’s growing influence in the global artificial intelligence landscape.
Drawing parallels with India’s G20 presidency model, Vaishnaw said the government is adopting a decentralised approach in the run-up to the summit. Regional AI summits are being organised across all states, aimed at building awareness, capacity and participation at the grassroots level. Recent regional summits have already been held in Meghalaya and Odisha, while a similar conclave concluded in Rajasthan on Tuesday.
During the Rajasthan summit, the state’s AI policy was formally launched along with a new AI-focused skilling programme designed to bridge the gap between young people and emerging technologies. The initiative seeks to empower youth and small entrepreneurs with practical AI skills that can be applied in everyday life and business operations, particularly to improve productivity in small and medium enterprises.
Vaishnaw said the government has set an ambitious target of training 10 lakh youth and small entrepreneurs in AI skills within the next year. The programme aims to ensure that the benefits of artificial intelligence are not limited to large corporations but reach individuals, startups and small businesses across the country.
Highlighting the scale of India’s AI push, the minister noted that the country is currently witnessing investments of nearly $70 billion in artificial intelligence, calling it a “very significant” figure. He added that the national AI mission encompasses new experiments, applications and technology development projects, with investments flowing across all five layers of the AI stack as well as key application areas.
The upcoming Global AI Impact Summit is expected to showcase India’s growing AI ecosystem, policy direction and talent base. With strong government backing, large-scale investments and a focus on inclusive skilling, India is positioning itself not just as a consumer of AI technologies, but as a global hub for AI innovation and impact.
