India’s Opportunity to Lead Global AI Governance

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Context

India will host the AI Impact Summit in February 2026, aiming to demonstrate how governments—not just corporations—can guide artificial intelligence (AI) toward inclusive development, safety, and global cooperation.

Leveraging India’s Strengths for Inclusive AI Leadership

Democratizing AI through National Consultation: India’s Ministry of Electronics and IT initiated a nationwide AI consultation via the MyGov platform, inviting inputs from students, researchers, and startups, thus providing the Summit with grassroots legitimacy and democratic input.
Digital Public Infrastructure as Proof of Capability: India’s success with platforms like Aadhaar and UPI showcases the equitable deployment of digital tools, positioning India to guide AI’s inclusive application at a global scale.
Pledge-Based Accountability Framework: India proposes that delegations make actionable pledges—such as translating healthcare information into local languages using AI—tracked publicly to foster transparency and measurable impact.

Addressing Global Divides and AI Governance Gaps

Bringing the Global South to the Forefront: India can ensure inclusive representation by promoting participation from underrepresented regions and proposing an AI for Billions Fund, funded by development banks and Gulf investors.
Establishing a Shared Safety Protocol: India can propose the formation of a Global AI Safety Collaborative that standardizes stress testing, red-teaming, and bias evaluation of AI models exceeding a compute threshold.
Voluntary Yet Binding Code of Conduct: To balance regulatory extremes, India may draft a middle-path AI Code of Conduct mandating voluntary yet specific norms like reporting red-team results and disclosing compute thresholds.

Promoting Global Unity and Avoiding Geopolitical Fragmentation

Avoiding AI Summit Fragmentation: The Paris AI Summit's divisions highlighted geopolitical strains; India’s 2026 summit must aim for consensus by focusing on shared values, not rival blocs.
Championing Multilingual and Cultural Diversity: India could announce a multilingual AI challenge targeting 50 underserved languages, reinforcing that AI talent and value creation are globally distributed.
Reframing India’s Global Identity: Rather than building a new authority, India should weave together existing global AI frameworks and emerge as a bridge between developed and developing nations.

Practice Question:

"India is uniquely positioned to mediate global efforts in artificial intelligence governance. Critically examine how India can leverage its digital public infrastructure and diplomatic standing to promote inclusive, safe, and equitable AI development at international platforms." (250 words)

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