'Google can work with our talented students': PM Modi meets Sundar Pichai in New Delhi
The India AI Impact Summit 2026 is being held at Bharat Mandapam in New Delhi from February 16 to February 20.
- Feb 18, 2026,
- Updated Feb 18, 2026 4:28 PM IST
Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Wednesday met Sundar Pichai, CEO of Google, on the sidelines of the India AI Impact Summit 2026 in New Delhi.
Sharing details of the meeting on X, Modi said, “It was a delight to meet Mr. Sundar Pichai on the sidelines of the AI Impact Summit in Delhi. Talked about the work India is doing in AI and how Google can work with our talented students and professionals in this field.”
Pichai, who is in India to attend the summit and will deliver the keynote address on February 20, also expressed his excitement about being back in the country.
In a post on X, he wrote, “Nice to be back in India for the AI Impact Summit - a very warm welcome as always and the papers looked great too.”
The India AI Impact Summit 2026 is being held at Bharat Mandapam in New Delhi from February 16 to February 20.
The event has brought together policymakers, technology leaders, AI experts and civil society representatives from across the world to discuss the future of artificial intelligence.
The summit is the first global AI gathering of its kind to be hosted in the Global South. It is aligned with the vision of “Sarvajana Hitaya, Sarvajana Sukhaya” (welfare for all, happiness for all) and global principles of AI for Humanity.
More than 110 countries and 30 international organisations are participating in the summit, including about 20 Heads of State or Government level participants and around 45 Ministers.
In a separate interview with ANI’s text service, Prime Minister Modi spoke about how AI could reshape India’s IT sector.
“India’s IT sector has been the backbone of our services exports and a key driver of economic growth. AI presents both a tremendous opportunity and a challenge for this sector. AI market projections show India’s IT sector could reach $400 billion by 2030, driven by new waves of AI-enabled outsourcing and domain-specific automation,” he said.
The summit is guided by three pillars — People, Planet and Progress — focusing on human-centric AI, sustainability and inclusive technological growth.
Google’s $15 billion plan for India
In October, Google announced plans to invest $15 billion over the next five years to set up a major artificial intelligence data centre in Andhra Pradesh.
The campus will come up in the port city of Visakhapatnam and is expected to become the company’s largest AI hub outside the United States, marking one of the biggest investments in India’s technology infrastructure.
“This is the largest AI hub that we are going to be investing in anywhere in the world outside of the United States,” said Thomas Kurian, CEO of Google Cloud, at an event in New Delhi. “It is a part of a global network of AI centres in 12 different countries.”
The facility will start with a capacity of 1 gigawatt and is expected to expand to “multiple gigawatts” over time, Kurian added.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Wednesday met Sundar Pichai, CEO of Google, on the sidelines of the India AI Impact Summit 2026 in New Delhi.
Sharing details of the meeting on X, Modi said, “It was a delight to meet Mr. Sundar Pichai on the sidelines of the AI Impact Summit in Delhi. Talked about the work India is doing in AI and how Google can work with our talented students and professionals in this field.”
Pichai, who is in India to attend the summit and will deliver the keynote address on February 20, also expressed his excitement about being back in the country.
In a post on X, he wrote, “Nice to be back in India for the AI Impact Summit - a very warm welcome as always and the papers looked great too.”
The India AI Impact Summit 2026 is being held at Bharat Mandapam in New Delhi from February 16 to February 20.
The event has brought together policymakers, technology leaders, AI experts and civil society representatives from across the world to discuss the future of artificial intelligence.
The summit is the first global AI gathering of its kind to be hosted in the Global South. It is aligned with the vision of “Sarvajana Hitaya, Sarvajana Sukhaya” (welfare for all, happiness for all) and global principles of AI for Humanity.
More than 110 countries and 30 international organisations are participating in the summit, including about 20 Heads of State or Government level participants and around 45 Ministers.
In a separate interview with ANI’s text service, Prime Minister Modi spoke about how AI could reshape India’s IT sector.
“India’s IT sector has been the backbone of our services exports and a key driver of economic growth. AI presents both a tremendous opportunity and a challenge for this sector. AI market projections show India’s IT sector could reach $400 billion by 2030, driven by new waves of AI-enabled outsourcing and domain-specific automation,” he said.
The summit is guided by three pillars — People, Planet and Progress — focusing on human-centric AI, sustainability and inclusive technological growth.
Google’s $15 billion plan for India
In October, Google announced plans to invest $15 billion over the next five years to set up a major artificial intelligence data centre in Andhra Pradesh.
The campus will come up in the port city of Visakhapatnam and is expected to become the company’s largest AI hub outside the United States, marking one of the biggest investments in India’s technology infrastructure.
“This is the largest AI hub that we are going to be investing in anywhere in the world outside of the United States,” said Thomas Kurian, CEO of Google Cloud, at an event in New Delhi. “It is a part of a global network of AI centres in 12 different countries.”
The facility will start with a capacity of 1 gigawatt and is expected to expand to “multiple gigawatts” over time, Kurian added.