New Delhi [India], February 19, 2026 : Former UK Prime Minister Rishi Sunak on
Thursday (February 19, 2026) called India the ideal venue for shaping the future of artificial intelligence (AI), and said there was “no better place” to deliberate on the global AI transformation, highlighting the country’s digital public infrastructure, innovation
ecosystem and public optimism around the technology.
While addressing the AI Impact Summit as a keynote Speaker here, he
said India was uniquely positioned to drive the next phase of AI’s global journey, not
just for developed nations, but for the developing world as well.
“We do need a regular forum, where we can all meet and discuss this technology,
and that is what this Summit provides under Prime Modi’s leadership.” he said
adding that the summit would show how AI can improve health and education “in
every corner of the globe” and enhance human dignity.
Sunak emphasised that AI safety and AI progress go hand in hand.
According to him, public trust will ultimately determine AI’s success, particularly in
the public sector, where citizens can directly experience faster services, better
healthcare and simpler government interactions.
“The debate about AI becomes real rather than abstract when people see tangible
improvements in their lives,” he said.
“From the invention of the telephone, it took around 75 years to get to 100 million
users; it took the PC 15 years, the internet 7 years, so how long did it take ChatGPT,
two months,” he said, adding, “We do need a regular forum where we can meet and
discuss this technology.”
Placing India at the centre of the global AI narrative, Sunak praised the country’s
digital public infrastructure, including Aadhaar, UPI and Ayushman Bharat Health
Accounts, as foundational systems capable of delivering AI-powered services to 1.4
billion people.
“The India Stack has shown people how technology can benefit them in their
everyday lives,” he said, adding that Indians are among the world’s most prolific
users of mobile data and AI tools and are the second-largest contributors to AI
projects globally.
He also lauded India’s vibrant startup ecosystem, noting that the country has
produced over 125 unicorns, with companies such as ‘Sarvam AI’ emerging as
leaders in the space.
Referring to India’s culture of frugal innovation, Sunak said it enables ambitious
achievements at lower costs, citing the country’s space missions as an example. He
stressed that public confidence is critical for AI adoption and observed that, unlike
growing pessimism in parts of the West, nearly nine out of ten Indians remain
optimistic about AI.