UN Chief to Attend AI Impact Summit 2026 in New Delhi
Senior United Nations leaders, including Secretary-General António Guterres, will participate in the AI Impact Summit 2026 in New Delhi from February 16 to 20. This event marks the first global artificial intelligence gathering of its scale to be hosted in the Global South.
Summit Objectives
Organized by India’s Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology, the Summit aims to bring together governments, international organizations, industry, academia, and civil society to advance the responsible development and deployment of artificial intelligence in support of sustainable development goals.
UN’s Role and Events
The UN system will convene over 30 side events during the five-day Summit, focusing on critical themes such as:
- Agriculture and food security
- Gender equality
- Health systems
- Digital public infrastructure
- Disaster risk reduction
- Children’s safety
Global Cooperation on AI Governance
Ahead of his visit, Guterres emphasized the need for global cooperation on AI governance. He stated, “We need shared understandings to build effective guardrails, unlock innovation for the common good, and foster cooperation.”
Attendees and Leadership
The Secretary-General will be joined by several senior UN and international leaders, including:
- Volker Türk, UN High Commissioner for Human Rights
- Amandeep Singh Gill, Under-Secretary-General and Special Envoy for Digital and Emerging Technologies
- Kristalina Georgieva, Managing Director of the International Monetary Fund
- Gilbert F. Houngbo, Director-General of the International Labour Organization
- Doreen Bogdan-Martin, Secretary-General of the International Telecommunication Union
- Kamal Kishore, the Secretary-General’s Special Representative for Disaster Risk Reduction
Senior representatives from UNDP, UN Women, UNESCO, UNICEF, UNFPA, FAO, the World Intellectual Property Organization, and the UNICRI are also expected to participate.
Independent International Scientific Panel on AI
The Summit follows a significant development at the UN, with the General Assembly appointing 40 members to the Independent International Scientific Panel on Artificial Intelligence. This panel, the first global scientific body of its kind on AI, will assess how artificial intelligence is transforming societies and economies worldwide.
Selected from over 2,600 candidates, the panel members will serve in their personal capacity and issue an annual report providing evidence-based assessments of AI’s opportunities, risks, and impacts, including contributions to the new Global Dialogue on AI Governance.
India’s Budget and AI Integration
The Union government’s recent Budget announcements underline India’s broader push to integrate artificial intelligence across education, skills, and emerging industries. Union Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman announced the introduction of AI in education, marking a significant step towards embedding emerging technologies into the learning ecosystem.
In her Budget 2026 speech, Sitharaman mentioned “artificial intelligence” a record 11 times, highlighting its role across multiple domains:
- Governance: Described as a force multiplier for improving public service delivery.
- Labour Market Analysis: AI will assess the impact of emerging technologies on job roles and skill requirements.
- Bharat-VISTAAR: A new multilingual AI tool aimed at improving linguistic accessibility.
- Agriculture: AI integration proposed through AgriStack portals and ICAR agricultural practice packages.
- Healthcare: Focus on research and AI integration into assistive devices for persons with disabilities.
The Budget also flagged the use of AI in customs and security through expanded non-intrusive scanning and advanced imaging for risk assessment. In education, it proposed embedding AI modules into the national curriculum from the school level, alongside teacher training.
Conclusion
Over the past five years, the Union government has been actively promoting AI across sectors, with an emphasis on integrating AI and other emerging technologies into curricula. This comprehensive approach aims to foster innovation and ensure that India remains at the forefront of technological advancement.
