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On the third day of the India AI Impact Summit 2026 in New Delhi, the focus shifted from high-level policy to real-world deployment and massive capital commitments. The day was headlined by high-profile “fireside chats” at the ITC Maurya, featuring former UK Prime Minister Rishi Sunak and OpenAI’s Head of Global Strategy, Chris Lehane, as India solidified its position as the voice of the Global South in the AI era.
A $200 Billion Vision for the Global South
The central theme of the day was the operationalization of a $200 billion investment framework aimed at bridging the “AI Divide.” Union IT Minister Ashwini Vaishnaw detailed this ambitious roadmap, which seeks to funnel global capital into three key areas:
- Sovereign Infrastructure: Expanding India’s national compute capacity beyond 58,000 GPUs to provide open-access “AI air” for startups and researchers.
- Sector-Specific Deployment: Using AI to solve population-scale problems in healthcare, education, and agriculture.
- The Global South Bridge: Positioning India as a provider of affordable, scalable AI solutions for developing nations, ensuring they aren’t merely consumers of Western technology but active participants in its creation.
High-Profile Dialogues
Rishi Sunak on the “Age of Intelligence”
Former UK PM Rishi Sunak engaged in a deep-dive session on global AI governance. He praised India’s Digital Public Infrastructure (DPI) as the gold standard for how governments can deploy technology ethically. Sunak emphasized that the “special relationship” in tech now extends to the India-UK-US corridor, focusing on safety standards and preventing the weaponization of deepfakes.
OpenAI’s Strategic Commitment
Chris Lehane of OpenAI highlighted India’s unique advantage: its massive, diverse data pool and a developer base that is expected to be the world’s largest by 2027. He discussed the necessity of an inclusive AI framework, stating that AI models must reflect local languages and cultural nuances to be truly effective in the Global South.
Key Announcements & Highlights
- AI Mission 2.0: The government hinted at the launch of “AI Mission 2.0,” focusing on deep-tech research and “AI diffusion” into small and medium enterprises (SMEs).
- $17 Billion VC Commitment: In addition to the $200 billion infrastructure goal, over $17 billion in venture capital has already been committed to Indian AI startups during the summit.
- The “Robot Dog” Controversy: In a lighter but widely shared moment, a controversy erupted over a Chinese-made robot dog displayed by a university, sparking debates on the floor about the urgency of “Atmanirbhar” (self-reliant) hardware to match India’s software prowess.
- Ethical Guardrails: A new “Safe and Trusted AI Chakra” was proposed—a framework to protect democratic processes and children from AI-generated misinformation.
