PM Modi inaugurates India AI summit, visits startup stalls on opening day

Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Monday inaugurated the India-AI Impact Summit 2026 at Bharat Mandapam in Delhi, kicking off a week of intense discussions, deal-making and technology showcases around artificial intelligence.

Soon after cutting the ribbon, PM Modi walked through the sprawling exhibition space, stopping frequently at stalls, speaking to founders and asking detailed questions about products and real-world applications. He spent several minutes with a number of startups, seeking to understand how their tools are being deployed on the



ground.

The expo, spread across more than 70,000 square metres, brings together over 600 startups along with global technology companies, research institutions, Union ministries, state governments and international partners. There are more than 300 exhibition setups and live demonstrations, organised broadly around themes of people, planet and progress.

Thirteen countries — including Australia, Japan, France, Germany and the United Kingdom — have put up national pavilions, underlining the international interest in partnerships around AI.