88 Nations Sign New Delhi AI Declaration at Summit
88 Nations Sign New Delhi AI Declaration at Summit
Leaders sign the New Delhi Declaration at the AI Impact Summit, pledging democratization, safety, and Global South representation as India pushes to become an AI hub.
At the AI Impact Summit in New Delhi, held February 16-20, leaders and tech chiefs from around the world gathered for days of discussions and showcases. On Saturday, February 21, 2026, 88 countries and international organisations signed the New Delhi Declaration, a blueprint that urges democratising AI to ensure the technology makes a real difference in people’s lives.
India framed its own priorities for the moment: AI must be accessible to as many people as possible, with emphasis on the Global South and languages under-represented in western language models, and the technology must be safe and trusted.
On the domestic front, the government pitched India as an attractive destination for AI infrastructure and research, aiming to drum up investor sentiment to pour money into AI projects. Several Indian giants announced investments in domestic AI initiatives, underscoring the country’s bid to become a regional hub.
Past summits have traveled from Bletchley Park to Seoul and Paris, with the Paris edition under Modi and Macron. The summit this year continued to stress a balance between innovation and safeguards, even as global debates about safety versus rapid deployment persisted.
Though there is no single international organisation behind the gatherings, signatories and observers say the New Delhi Declaration signals a growing appetite for broader cooperation on AI, with a focus on practical applications for the Global South and a governance framework that can be adopted across borders.
