AI Impact Summit 2026: India signs US-led Pax Silica; electronics, semiconductor industry to benefit greatly

India on Friday signed a declaration to join the US-led Pax Silica alliance aimed at bolstering resilient supply chains for critical minerals and artificial intelligence. The declaration was signed at the ongoing India AI Impact Summit in Delhi. 

The move comes amid efforts by both countries to finalise the proposed bilateral trade deal and move ahead on several other initiatives to strengthen their ties after a spell of tension in the relations. 

The Pax Silica initiative seeks to enhance technological cooperation and promote secure access to important resources for next-generation industries. One of its key pillars is to create a durable economic framework to drive AI-powered growth across partner nations.

Member nations of the Pax Silica include Australia, Greece, Israel, Japan, Qatar, South Korea, Singapore, the UAE, and the UK. 

"We recognise that a reliable supply chain is indispensable to our mutual economic security," according to the Pax Silica declaration.

"We believe that economic value and growth will flow through and across all levels of the global AI supply chain, driving historic opportunity and demand for energy, critical minerals, manufacturing, technological hardware, infrastructure, and new markets not yet invented," it further said.

The declaration also focuses on deeper economic and technological cooperation across supply chains, besides a commitment to mutual prosperity and security. 

Meanwhile, Union Minister for Electronics and Information Technology Ashwini Vaishnaw said that Pax Silica would greatly benefit India's electronics and semiconductor industry.

"India has become a part of the Pax Silica. This will greatly benefit India's electronics and semiconductor industry," Vaishnaw said after the declaration was signed." 

He added that the first semiconductor plant in the country will begin commercial production very soon. 

"Ten plants are already established in India and are in the process of being established, and very soon, the first semiconductor plant will begin commercial production. In that context, the most advanced two-nanometer chips are being designed in India today. A complete ecosystem is emerging in India. Pax Silica will be crucial for this, and the youth of India will benefit from it."

He also took this opportunity to attack the grand old Congress party.

In a not-so-veiled attack at the leading opposition party, Vaishnaw said, "If this spirit had persisted since 1947, we can all imagine how much compounding would have occurred in India's growth. No problem, even if it's from 2014. Now, your generation will reap the benefits of this compounding." 

He further said that Indian engineers are designing the most complex, most advanced 2-nanometer chips in India. 

"We all know that the semiconductor industry will need about 1 million more talented people. Where will that talent come from? This will come from here. Today, students have access to the world's best semiconductor design tools, and they're absolutely free. And it's yielding results... When we say chips, some people think of potato chips. Forget it, they will keep crying." 

He added that while the opposition continues to lament, India has to move forward.

"Sometimes they cry in Parliament, sometimes somewhere else. All this will continue, so we have to move forward. The country has a direction, a clear goal, and we have to take global leadership in the semiconductor industry and the electronics industry."

Moreover, US Ambassador to India Sergio Gor said that India's joining Pax Silica was not merely symbolic but "strategic and essential". 

"India is a nation with deep talent, deep enough to rival challenges. India's engineering depth offers critical capabilities for this vital coalition. In addition to talent, India has made important strides towards critical mineral processing capacity, and that is something that we are also fully engaged in. Policies that will reinforce US-India tech cooperation will power AI innovation and adoption for years to come. We can share trusted AI technology with the world, and especially with partners like India," he added.