Beyond the Galgotias’ robodog, the AI Summit delivered

The AI Summit in Delhi, despite the first-day chaos and the controversy surrounding Galgotias University the next day, did yield some credible outcomes.

Reliance Industries and its telecom arm Jio pledged to invest $109.8 billion (over Rs10 lakh crore) over the next seven years to build artificial intelligence and data infrastructure, chairman Mukesh Ambani announced on Thursday.

A few days earlier, the Adani Group promised investments worth $100 billion for renewable energy–powered AI data centres by 2035.

Then there was Microsoft, which announced plans to invest $50 billion by the end of the decade to help expand AI across countries of the Global South, following last year’s commitment of $17.5 billion.

Yotta Data Services, Tata Consultancy Services, infrastructure major Larsen & Toubro, and several others also announced investment plans.

The issue, however, is not the volume of commitments but the sanctity of such promises. Past experience shows that realisation rates have often been poor.

One would therefore need to be excessively optimistic to believe that all the pledges made at the Summit will be fully honoured.

At the same time, it would be excessive pessimism to dismiss the Summit as mere talk. Panels and closed-door roundtables involving government officials, technology entrepreneurs, venture capitalists, researchers, and civil society representatives did move discussions beyond aspirational rhetoric.

The focus shifted to concrete questions: how to build robust datasets without compromising privacy; how to support domestic innovation while remaining integrated with global supply chains; and how to ensure that AI deployment aligns with democratic values and developmental priorities.

Addressing global leaders at the AI Impact Summit, Prime Minister Narendra Modi outlined India’s MANAV vision for artificial intelligence.

MANAV, meaning “human” in Hindi, stands for five core principles: a Moral and ethical system, Accountable governance, National sovereignty (particularly over data),

Accessible and inclusive technology, and Valid and legitimate systems. Calling AI “a transformation of human history”, the Prime Minister said, “What we are seeing today, what we are predicting is just the beginning of its impact.” He added that AI is expanding human capabilities rather than merely making machines intelligent.

Another important outcome of the Summit was India’s decision to sign a declaration joining the US-led strategic alliance Pax Silica.

The initiative is described as a coalition of trusted nations committed to securing the “silicon stack”, from critical minerals and semiconductor fabrication to advanced AI systems and deployment infrastructure.

Its stated aim is to reduce overconcentration in global supply chains, prevent economic coercion, and ensure that emerging technologies are developed and governed by open, democratic societies. In effect, it seeks to counter China’s dominance in critical minerals.

The Summit also fostered dialogue on regulatory frameworks that balance innovation with accountability. Participants examined models from different jurisdictions and debated how India might craft a regulatory approach suited to its socio-economic context.

The emphasis on ethical AI—covering bias mitigation, explainability, and transparency—reflected a growing recognition that technological leadership cannot be divorced from normative commitments.

The government could certainly have organised the Summit better, particularly by providing greater opportunities for start-ups and innovators to showcase their work. Even so, the event was far from a failure.