Prime Minister Narendra Modi has called on India’s AI startups to prioritise ethical, transparent, and inclusive models, positioning the country as a global leader in AI innovation at the upcoming India AI Impact Summit 2026.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Thursday urged India’s artificial intelligence startups to ensure their models are ethical, unbiased, transparent, and rooted in data-privacy principles, urging founders to shape a distinctly Indian approach to the technology that can lead globally. Chairing a roundtable at his residence at 7, Lok Kalyan Marg, he told participants that startups and AI entrepreneurs are “the co-architects of India’s future” and stressed the country’s capacity for both innovation and large-scale implementation. He said India should present a unique AI model to the world that reflects the spirit of “Made in India, Made for the World”. [1]
Modi encouraged startups to focus on affordable and inclusive AI and on “frugal innovation” that can be exported from India to the world, while also promoting local and indigenous content and regional languages through their models. The Prime Minister framed such choices as both a strategic opportunity and a moral imperative, calling for transparency and fairness in algorithmic design. [1]
Twelve Indian startups that have qualified for the AI for ALL: Global Impact Challenge attended the roundtable to present their work. They described projects spanning Indian-language foundation models and multilingual large language models; speech-to-text, text-to-audio and text-to-video systems; generative 3D content for e-commerce, marketing and personalised content creation; engineering simulations and materials research; advanced analytics for industry decision-making; and healthcare diagnostics and medical research. [1]
The meeting came as India prepares to host the India AI Impact Summit 2026 next month. Government communications and industry briefings give slightly different schedules: the Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology and Indian diplomatic missions state the summit will be held on February 19–20, 2026 in New Delhi, while a report by the India Brand Equity Foundation describes a multi-day event from February 16–20, 2026. All official materials describe the gathering as the first global-scale AI summit to be hosted in the Global South and say it will focus on themes including Safe and Trusted AI, Inclusion, Human Capital, Resilience, Innovation and Efficiency, Democratizing AI and AI for Economic Development and Social Impact. [4][5][3][7]
The AI for ALL: Global Impact Challenge, a flagship initiative tied to the summit, aims to identify and accelerate inclusive, scalable AI innovations worldwide. According to JICA, the challenge invites submissions from students, researchers, professionals and start‑ups; it offers awards of up to INR 2.5 Crore for the top winners and travel support for 20 finalists to attend the summit. [6]
Start-up leaders at the roundtable praised the government’s commitment to building an enabling AI ecosystem and said India’s innovation centre of gravity is shifting towards the country, with an expanding market for development and deployment of AI solutions. They argued that a combination of local-language capabilities, cost‑effective engineering and large-scale implementation experience gives India an edge in delivering people‑centred AI at scale. [1]
Modi’s intervention and the government’s summit pitch underscore a policy aim to position India not merely as a consumer of global AI platforms but as a source of models and solutions tailored to distinct social, linguistic and developmental contexts. Officials and industry participants say that emphasising data governance, transparency and inclusion will be central to convincing international partners that India’s approach is both ethically grounded and commercially exportable. [1][3][4]
##Reference Map:
- [1] (Lokmat Times) – Paragraph 1, Paragraph 2, Paragraph 3, Paragraph 6, Paragraph 7
- [3] (IBEF) – Paragraph 4, Paragraph 7
- [4] (Indian Embassy Netherlands / MeitY) – Paragraph 4, Paragraph 7
- [5] (Consulate General of India, Chicago) – Paragraph 4
- [6] (JICA) – Paragraph 5
- [7] (Times of India) – Paragraph 4
Source: Noah Wire Services
Noah Fact Check Pro
The draft above was created using the information available at the time the story first
emerged. We’ve since applied our fact-checking process to the final narrative, based on the criteria listed
below. The results are intended to help you assess the credibility of the piece and highlight any areas that may
warrant further investigation.
Freshness check
Score:
10
Notes:
The narrative is fresh, with no evidence of prior publication. The earliest known publication date is January 8, 2026. The content appears original, with no signs of recycling or republishing across low-quality sites. The narrative is based on a press release, which typically warrants a high freshness score. No discrepancies in figures, dates, or quotes were found. No similar content appeared more than 7 days earlier. The article includes updated data and new material, justifying a higher freshness score.
Quotes check
Score:
10
Notes:
The direct quotes in the narrative are unique and do not appear in earlier material. No identical quotes were found online, indicating potentially original or exclusive content.
Source reliability
Score:
7
Notes:
The narrative originates from Lokmat Times, a news outlet with limited online presence and reputation. This raises some uncertainty regarding the reliability of the information presented.
Plausability check
Score:
8
Notes:
The claims made in the narrative are plausible and align with known initiatives and statements by Prime Minister Narendra Modi regarding AI ethics and development. However, the lack of coverage by more reputable outlets and the limited information about the source raise some concerns. The tone and language used are consistent with official communications.
Overall assessment
Verdict (FAIL, OPEN, PASS): OPEN
Confidence (LOW, MEDIUM, HIGH): MEDIUM
Summary:
The narrative presents fresh and potentially original content, with direct quotes not found elsewhere. However, the source’s limited online presence and the absence of coverage by more reputable outlets raise concerns about its reliability. While the claims are plausible and align with known initiatives, the overall assessment is open due to these uncertainties.
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