India’s growing influence in artificial intelligence took center stage at the India AI Impact Summit 2026, where global technology leaders discussed the country’s expanding role in shaping next-generation AI innovation and adoption.
Speaking at the summit, Alexandr Wang, Chief AI Officer at Meta, described India as one of the most important markets for the company’s future AI strategy. “India is one of the most important countries for Meta, full stop. It’s one of the few countries where we could scale personal superintelligence very fast… There are more Indian consumer AI companies than there are American consumer AI companies,” he said, adding, “There are more Indian consumer AI companies than there are American consumer AI companies.”
Wang noted that India has moved beyond being only a technology consumer and is now emerging as a strong force in the global AI startup ecosystem. He revealed that Meta plans to introduce a series of new AI models over the coming months, designed specifically for different markets rather than following a “one-size-fits-all” approach.
“These will be deeply integrated with our products in a way we’re really excited about. We’re optimistic about the trajectory we’re on. The first models will be good, and as the year goes on I think we’re going to be pushing the frontier. Our vision is personal superintelligence – AI that knows you, your goals, your interests, and helps you with whatever you’re focused on doing.
It serves you, whoever you are, wherever you are,” he said.
He emphasized collaboration between governments and private companies to build AI systems suited to local needs. “It’s about collaboration between the public and private sectors – to deliver these four building blocks, and to design and deploy AI that works for your citizens and your economies. I don’t want these amazing technologies to be one-size-fits-all. I want them to serve your needs – designed for the challenges and opportunities that are unique to India, to societies across the global south, and all over the world. I want them to serve you as an individual. No matter who you are, where you live, what language you speak, or what culture you’re a part of,” he said.
Wang added that Meta’s AI tools are already widely used across India through platforms such as WhatsApp and Instagram. “If you want to make technology that serves society, Meta has an incredible opportunity to get this technology into people’s lives,” he noted. “Across India, creators use our AI to automatically translate their Reels into the language of the person watching. Small businesses talk to customers through WhatsApp business agents they created in 10 minutes on their phones, and use our Gen AI tools to create ads and reach customers way more efficiently than they could before. And, India has world class developers building genius things to solve big societal challenges,” he added.
According to a news agency, the summit witnessed participation from more than 110 countries, 30 international organizations, around 20 HoS/HoG-level representatives, and about 45 ministers.
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