Union Minister for Electronics and Information Technology, Railways, and Information & Broadcasting Ashwini Vaishnaw on Wednesday outlined India’s comprehensive strategy for artificial intelligence, semiconductors, and deep-tech innovation during interactions on the sidelines of the World Economic Forum Annual Meeting 2026 in Davos.
The Minister said the upcoming AI Impact Summit will focus on three key pillars—impact, accessibility, and safety. He noted that the summit aims to showcase how AI models and applications can enhance efficiency, boost productivity, and generate a multiplier effect for the economy. Accessibility, particularly for India and the Global South, will be another priority, with India seeking to replicate the success of UPI and Digital Public Infrastructure in the AI domain. Safety will form the third pillar, with emphasis on developing guardrails, guidelines, and a robust AI regulatory framework within India.
Vaishnaw said global leaders and technology firms will participate in the summit, which will also feature investment announcements and the rollout of India’s AI models.
Highlighting India’s startup ecosystem, the Minister said the country now has nearly 2 lakh startups, ranking among the top three globally, with a growing shift towards deep-tech innovation. He pointed out that 24 Indian startups are designing chips, with 18 already receiving venture capital funding, underscoring confidence in India’s capabilities.
On semiconductors, Vaishnaw said India is initially focusing on the 28nm to 90nm segment, which accounts for about 75 percent of global chip demand, before moving to advanced nodes. In partnership with industry players such as IBM, India has charted a roadmap from 28nm to 7nm by 2030 and 3nm by 2032, and aims to emerge among the top four to five semiconductor nations globally.
The Minister also highlighted meetings with Google Cloud CEO Thomas Kurian and Meta’s Chief Global Affairs Officer Joel Kaplan. Google reiterated its commitment to India’s AI ecosystem, including a $15 billion AI data centre in Vizag, while discussions with Meta focused on user safety, deepfakes, and AI-generated content.
Explaining India’s AI strategy, Vaishnaw said the country is working across the entire AI stack—applications, models, chips, data centres, and energy. He noted that the application layer offers the highest return on investment and said Indian IT firms have already pivoted toward AI, with AI hiring up about 33 percent.
The Minister said nearly 95 percent of AI workloads are handled by small models, and India is developing around 12 focused sovereign AI models that can run on small GPU clusters at low cost. He stressed the importance of sovereign AI capability to ensure resilience and affordability, adding that several models have already been tested and are nearing launch.
On infrastructure, Vaishnaw said around USD 70 billion of AI infrastructure investment is already underway. He also highlighted the energy component, noting that opening nuclear energy to private participation under the Shakti Act will support the AI ecosystem.
Calling AI a multi-decade journey, the Minister said the stark contrast between the human brain’s energy efficiency and power-hungry data centres highlights vast future innovation potential. He added that the government is acting as a demand generator for AI, especially in sectors such as weather forecasting, agriculture, and healthcare, with a strong focus on predictive and preventive healthcare.
Vaishnaw also emphasized industry collaboration in skilling and curriculum development, urging companies to help create AI-ready courses so graduates are prepared for the emerging AI-driven industrial transformation.