India has already attracted nearly $70 billion in investments linked to artificial intelligence, and the figure could double by the end of the India-AI Impact Summit 2026, Union Minister for Electronics and Information Technology Ashwini Vaishnaw said on Friday, highlighting rising global confidence in the country’s AI ecosystem. 

Speaking ahead of the summit, scheduled to be held in New Delhi from February 16 to 20, Vaishnaw said India’s information technology sector is undergoing a structural shift, moving away from traditional software development towards AI-driven solutions. 

“The strength that our IT industry has built over several decades is now being channelled into providing AI solutions, rather than the old model of software development,” the minister said, noting that companies are repositioning themselves for the next phase of growth. 

India's own AI ecosystem

Vaishnaw described the India-AI Impact Summit as a milestone event, calling it the fourth and the largest AI summit globally. He said India has built its AI ecosystem in a systematic manner, enabling the country to emerge as a significant player in the global artificial intelligence landscape, adding that Indian IT firms are actively re-skilling their workforce, re-engaging with clients and exploring new market opportunities as AI adoption accelerates across sectors. According to the minister, the real economic gains from AI will come through its deployment and the productivity and efficiency improvements it enables. 

Sovereign AI models

The minister also said India will unveil its sovereign AI models at the summit. He noted that Prime Minister Narendra Modi recently interacted with teams working on India’s indigenous AI stack, and the models will be formally launched during the event. 

Highlighting infrastructure readiness, Vaishnaw said around 50% of India’s installed power generation capacity now comes from green energy sources, a development that is drawing global attention. He added that access to sustainable power is critical for scaling data centres and AI infrastructure. 

AI-related skills

On skills, Vaishnaw said more than 500,000 students have already acquired AI-related skills, and the government plans to extend AI infrastructure and curriculum support to 500 universities to strengthen the talent pipeline. 

He linked India’s AI push to the government’s broader approach of democratising technology, citing initiatives such as UPI, DigiLocker, CoWIN and the nationwide 5G rollout. 

Earlier, Prime Minister Modi held a high-level interaction with CEOs and experts from the AI ecosystem, including leaders from TCS, Wipro, HCLTech, Zoho, LTI Mindtree, Jio Platforms, and AdaniConnex, as preparations intensify for the India-AI Impact Summit 2026.