New Delhi: India “bears” a special responsibility with regard to the global artificial intelligence architecture as countries from the “Global South” look to New Delhi for inspiration when it comes to such technologies, said External Affairs Minister S. Jaishankar Tuesday.
“India bears a special responsibility because many other nations—especially those of the Global South—they look to us for inspiration, and certainly in the case of the digital public infrastructure, today what we have achieved in the last decade,” Jaishankar said, speaking at the Trust and Safety India (TASI) Festival 2025 here.
He added: “The difference with the past is that this particular transformation that is going to come upon us, this will be all-pervasive and not just sectoral. It will impact every citizen in every corner of the world. New efficiencies and new possibilities will certainly emerge; but so too will new players and new power centres.”
The TASI festival, which focuses on AI and its governance, is being held for the first time in New Delhi, as a precursor to the AI Impact Summit that will be hosted by India in February 2026. Previous editions of the festival have been held in the Netherlands and France. The Indian edition is being hosted by the Centre for Social Research (CSR).
India has increasingly taken the role of shepherding conversations on the global governance rules over AI. Prime Minister Narendra Modi, co-chaired the last global AI summit held in Paris earlier this year along with President Emmanuel Macron of France.
“Understandably, some of the narrative is influenced by those who have skin in the game. But at the end of the day, it is imperative that we take a sober and we take a balanced view. After all, concerns about bias, ethics, privacy and vulnerability are well-founded, deriving from pre-existing experiences. We also need to take particular precaution against the danger of losing trust in institutions and practices that underpin our daily life,” said the Indian foreign minister.
Questions over governance on AI have taken multiple forms, with administrations in the US, China and the European Union (EU) all taking different views on regulations surrounding the sector.
Jaishankar urged countries to “rise above” narrow self-interest and focus on the larger “collective good” due to the power AI has to impact every individual on the planet.
“Now we, in India, have consistently advocated for global AI governance and the shaping of an international agenda. We have demonstrated this during our G20 Presidency and strongly urged its usage for advancing sustainable development goals, while safeguarding trust, safety, fairness and accountability,” said Jaishankar.
(Edited by Vidhi Bhutra)
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