New Delhi: Prime Minister Narendra Modi held a series of high-level engagements on Wednesday, conducting nine bilateral meetings before concluding the day with an official banquet for visiting dignitaries attending the India AI Impact Summit 2026 in New Delhi.
The meetings were held on the sidelines of the summit and covered a wide range of subjects including technology cooperation, economic partnerships and global governance. According to official updates, PM Modi met Spanish President Pedro Sanchez, Finnish Prime Minister Petteri Orpo, Serbian President Aleksandar Vucic, Croatian Prime Minister Andrej Plenkovic, Estonian President Alar Karis, Kazakhstan Prime Minister Olzhas Bektenov and Bhutan Prime Minister Tshering Tobgay.
He also interacted with Google CEO Sundar Pichai and Vinod Khosla, founder of Sun Microsystems, at Hyderabad House, underscoring the summit’s strong industry participation.
Bilateral diplomacy on summit sidelines
The back-to-back meetings reflected India’s diplomatic outreach ahead of the formal inauguration of the India AI Impact Summit 2026. Discussions reportedly focused on strengthening collaboration in emerging technologies, digital infrastructure and artificial intelligence driven innovation.
Later in the evening, PM Modi welcomed global leaders at a banquet hosted at Bharat Mandapam, where informal conversations continued.
Summit inauguration and global participation
On Thursday, the Prime Minister is scheduled to attend the opening ceremony of the summit at Bharat Mandapam. The event will also be addressed by the President of France and the Secretary-General of the United Nations, along with leading global industry figures.
Following the inaugural session, leaders will visit the India AI Impact Expo 2026 and explore various country pavilions showcasing technological advancements.
Leaders’ plenary and CEO roundtable
The Prime Minister will participate in the Leaders’ Plenary, bringing together Heads of State, ministers and representatives from multilateral institutions to discuss governance frameworks, infrastructure and international cooperation in artificial intelligence.
He will later join a CEO roundtable featuring senior executives from global technology and industry firms. The discussions are expected to focus on investment, research partnerships, supply chains and deployment of AI systems.
The theme of the India AI Impact Summit 2026 is “welfare for all, happiness of all.” The summit is structured around seven Working Groups aligned to the pillars of People, Planet and Progress. These groups will deliberate on economic growth, democratizing AI resources, social inclusion, safe and trusted AI, human capital development, science and resilience.
According to official figures, the summit has drawn more than 500 global AI leaders, including around 100 CEOs and founders, 150 academicians and researchers and 400 CTOs, vice presidents and philanthropists. It is also attended by over 100 government representatives, including more than 20 Heads of State and Government and around 60 ministers and vice ministers.