India AI Impact Summit 2026

Access Partnership was on the ground every day at the India AI Impact Summit 2026 in New Delhi, convening leaders and practitioners on what it takes to deploy AI at scale across real economies. Across the week we hosted and contributed to sessions on AI and workforce skills, AI and child protection, global partnerships for diffusion, and AI for SMBs/MSMEs. We closed with our flagship session, “AI For Many: Going Beyond Moonshots,” launching the Global South AI Diffusion Playbook.

Future of Work in the Global South: Skills, Mobility, and Opportunity

Convening policymakers, industry leaders, and practitioners, this session examined critical skills gaps, regional priorities, and actionable frameworks for inclusive AI upskilling.

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AI in Schools: Protecting Learners and Empowering Educators

In a world with lots of fakes, what is a real-world toolkit to save minors from harm? The panel examined how artificial intelligence is reshaping school environments and what is needed to protect learners while supporting educators.

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US Chamber of Commerce and USIBC – US India Business Council Event

How can we power SMBs and MSMEs to be the transfusion mechanisms of AI diffusion? In a panel hosted by the US Chamber of Commerce and USIBC – US India Business Council, to share thoughts. Thanks to Docusign and Danielle Johnson-Kutch for the invite.

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AI Beyond Moonshots: A Playbook for Many

In our flagship session, we convened leaders from across the public and private sectors to translate global policy lessons into practical pathways for accelerating artificial intelligence adoption across India and the Global South. Drawing on insights from international policy-to-practice dialogues, it explored how digital infrastructure, skills, and governance can move from readiness to real-world deployment.

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AI Policy to Practice Lab Series (AIP2)

The AI Policy to Practice (AIP2) Lab Series convened senior policymakers, regulators, industry leaders, and development partners across London, Washington D.C., Brussels, and Delhi to address the next phase of global AI competitiveness: AI diffusion.

The series was officially affiliated with the India AI Impact Summit 2026 and was delivered as a programme of Policy Labs in the lead-up to the Summit. Each Lab contributed region-specific insights to a shared global agenda focused on translating AI ambition into real-world adoption.

AIP2 examined how AI can be embedded at scale across sectors, institutions, and markets, moving beyond high-level principles toward practical implementation. Insights from each Lab fed directly into the Global South AI Diffusion Playbook, which was formally launched at the India AI Impact Summit 2026.

We delivered:

Four policy labs framing a global AI diffusion agenda, linking readiness, governance, and adoption

Senior participation from government, regulators, industry, and development actors across regions

A concrete policy outcome, culminating in an actionable framework for AI adoption

Accelerating AI Adoption

The AIP2 Labs convened policymakers, industry leaders, and development partners to co-design practical strategies that enable responsible, inclusive AI adoption.

Delivered as officially affiliated Pre-Summit events for the India AI Impact Summit 2026, the Labs created a structured pathway from transatlantic policy discussions to global implementation. Each Lab focused on a critical layer of the AI adoption stack, from infrastructure and governance to skills, institutions, and organisational readiness.

Outcomes from the series converged at the India AI Impact Summit 2026, where global insights and India’s leadership on AI adoption came together in the launch of the Global South AI Diffusion Playbook.

Washington, DC

Laying the Digital Foundations

13 January 2026

Partner: Atlantic Council GeoTech Center

The first Lab set the stage by examining the physical and policy infrastructure needed for large-scale AI diffusion. Discussions addressed investment in compute, data centres, and power; cross-border data governance; and how transatlantic leadership can enable AI adoption across the Global South.

London

AI Policy & Global Governance

22 January 2026

Partners: Aspen Institute UK and techUK

The second Lab examined how AI governance is evolving from catastrophic–risk mitigation to comprehensive socioeconomic–impact assessment. We convened policymakers, diplomats, and industry leaders to explore AI governance models, corporate accountability in frontier AI, and digital sovereignty.

Brussels

Powering People & Skills

29 January 2026

Partner: European Institute of Innovation & Technology

Taking place on the margins of the International AI Summit, we focused on the human aspect, ensuring that workers, entrepreneurs, and SMEs have the skills and tools to adopt AI effectively. Participants explored how transatlantic models for workforce transition, innovation funding, and upskilling can be adapted for the Global South.

New Delhi

AI Beyond Moonshots: A Playbook for Many

20 February 2026

Partner: India AI Impact Summit

The final Lab translated insights from Washington, Brussels, and London into India’s and the broader Global South context, linking them to national priorities such as Viksit Bharat 2047 and Digital India, in alignment with the objectives of the India AI Mission.

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Official Pre-Summit Initiative

The AI Policy to Practice (AIP2) Lab Series was an officially affiliated Pre-Summit event series for the India AI Impact Summit 2026.

For participation, partnerships, or programme enquiries, contact Luca O’Neill at [email protected].

Official affiliation permits the use of Summit branding solely for the promotion of affiliated events and does not imply endorsement, approval, or validation of event content, speakers, or outcomes by IndiaAI or the Government of India.

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