India Seeks Middle Path Between U.S. and China at A.I. Summit

At the A.I. Impact Summit in New Delhi, India cast technology as a tool of foreign policy and a moral voice for smaller, developing countries. Lacking America’s homegrown A.I. giants and China’s know-how and rare earth elements, the country is pitching a different role on the global stage.

Leaders from Spain, Bolivia, Mauritius and Sri Lanka attended as India emphasized governance and the use of A.I. for public welfare, while highlighting its pool of I.T. workers and a large domestic market as a testing ground. Prime Minister Narendra Modi likened artificial intelligence to nuclear power, saying if A.I.

becomes "directionless," it will lead to destruction, and urging focus on what A.I. can accomplish now to serve people. Analysts called the approach a distinct, third-way alternative centered on the Global South and A.I. as a public good.

India, New Delhi

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