At the BT Best Banking & Economy Summit, Ashishkumar Chauhan drew parallels between past geopolitical conflicts and emerging technology battles. The NSE CEO said global power struggles have historically centered around control of critical resources — from oil that powered the mobility revolution in the 20th century to today’s race for dominance in artificial intelligence. He noted that while solar energy costs have fallen and are increasingly comparable to fossil fuels, the next decisive layer could be nuclear energy. With multiple experiments and innovations underway globally, Chauhan said scalable, controllable and efficient energy sources will determine industrial strength in the coming decades. As AI adoption accelerates, energy demand will rise sharply, making access to reliable and affordable power a strategic necessity. Over the next 5, 10 and 20 years, he said, several such competitive “games” will unfold — spanning AI, robotics and energy.