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www.newsindiatimes.com – that’s all you need to know News India Times (February 21, 2026 - February 27, 2026) February 27, 2026 18 India AI Impact Summit 2026 AI Summit 2026: Sam Altman Of OpenAI Hails India As Global AI Leader, Predicts “New And Better” Jobs H ighlighting India’s pivotal role in the global technological landscape, OpenAI CEO Sam Altman on Thurs- day stated that the country is currently leading the world in AI adoption and is poised to become one of the largest mar- kets for the technology. He said that India is not just participating in the Artificial Intelligence revolution but leading it. Speaking to ANI at the India AI Impact Summit 2026 in New Delhi, Altman expressed his optimism regarding the nation’s digital trajectory, not- ing that the work happening within India’s tech ecosystem is “amazing” and currently set- ting a global pace. He identified India as a primary driver of future innovation, suggesting the nation will wield a “huge amount of influence” over how the technology evolves globally. Addressing persistent con- cerns over automation, Altman acknowledged that while AI will definitely impact the job market, he remains confident in human adaptability. He emphasized that throughout history, technological shifts have consistently led to the discovery of new, more mean- ingful work. “It (AI) will definitely impact the job market, but we always find new things to do, and I have no doubt we will find lots of better ones this time,” Alt- man stated. Incidentally, OpenAI has seen its second-largest user base emerge from India. The company opened its first office in New Delhi last year “It is amazing to be here, obviously the work happening in India and the adoption of AI is leading the world, and I can’t wait to see what goes next,” Alt- man told ANI. Meanwhile, on the sidelines of the summit, the Tata Group, Tata Consultancy Services and OpenAI announced a multi- dimensional strategic partner- ship, that will drive AI-powered innovation across enterprise, consumer, and social sec- tors. This partnership spans multiple high-impact areas, including powering AI-led innovation across Tata Group companies, joint efforts to drive AI transformation across industries globally, and setting up AI infrastructure. -ANI By Sahil Pandey PHOTO:COURTESY ANI OpenAI CEO Sam Altman speaking to ANI. “No Technology Has Me Dreaming Bigger Than AI”: Sundar Pichai Of Google G oogle CEO Sundar Pi- chai addressed world leaders gathered at the AI Impact Summit in New Delhi, February 19, 2026. In his speech, Pichai said he was struck by the pace of change in India, reminisc- ing about his early days as a student and when Vishkhapat- nam-Vizag, was a quiet and modest coastal town, brim- ming with potential. “Now, in that same city, Google is establishing a full- stack AI hub, part of our $15 billion infrastructure invest- ment in India. When finished, this hub will house gigawatt- scale compute and a new inter- national subsea cable gateway, bringing jobs and the benefits of cutting-edge AI to people and businesses across India,” Pichai said. He also spoke of taking his mother and his octogenarian father on a self-driving car ride in San Francisco made him see progress “in a whole new light.” “Of course he said he’d be more impressed if it worked on India’s busy roads — still work- ing on that one, Dad,” Pichai quipped. “This progress shows what’s possible when humanity dreams big. And no technology has me dreaming bigger than AI. It is the biggest platform shift of our lifetimes,” Pichai contended, adding, “We are on the cusp of hyperprogress and new discoveries that can help emerging economies leapfrog legacy gaps.” But that outcome is neither guaranteed nor automatic, Pi- chai warned. “To build AI that is truly helpful for everyone, we must pursue it boldly, ap- proach it responsibly and work through this defining moment together.” Building AI requires people to “Act Bold” the Google CEO said, “Because AI can improve billions of lives and solve some of the hardest problems in sci- ence.” He gave as an example, drug discoveries like predicting protein structures using AI, as his company did through Google DeepMind, leading to AlphaFold, a breakthrough that won a Nobel Prize, compress- ing decades of reseach into a database that is now open to the world. “Today, over three million researchers in more than 190 countries are using it to develop malaria vaccines, fight antibiotic resistance and much more,” he said, citing other followup advances. The bold action must be used to tackle hitherto chal- lenging problems like in El Salvador where Google and the government are bring- ing affordable healthcare to thousands. “Or in India, where our work together is helping farmers protect their livelihoods in the face of monsoons. Last summer, for the first time, the Indian government sent AI- powered forecasts to millions of farmers, possible in part because of our Neural GCM model,” Pichai said. As with other speakers, Pichai also emphasized being responsible about how to use AI. “Technology brings incred- ible benefits, but we must ensure everyone has access to them. We cannot allow the digital divide to become an AI divide. That means investing in compute infrastructure and connectivity,” he said, adding, “We are also building a vast network of subsea fiber optic cables, including four new systems between the U.S. and India., as part of our America- India Connect Initiative.” Responsibility also means navigating profound economic shifts, because AI will undeni- ably reshape the workforce — automating some roles, evolv- ing others and creating entirely new careers. “Twenty years ago, the con- cept of a professional “YouTube Creator” didn’t exist; today, there are upwards of 60 million around the world,” he pointed out. Training is also crucial he emphasized. As are tools to verify the authenticity of the content people read and see. “But no matter how bold we are, or how responsible, we won’t realize AI’s full benefits unless we work together,” and that includes Governments, regulators, innovators, tech companies, etc. “We have the opportunity to improve lives at a once-in-gen- eration scale,” he said, adding, “I know we have the capability to do this. And looking at the leaders here today, I believe we also have the will.” By a StaffWriter Sundar Pichai. CEO, Google and Alphabet. PHOTO:NARENDRAMODI.IN Roshni Nadar Malhotra Of HCL Calls AI A “Structural Shift”, Emphasizes IP-Led Value Creation C hairperson of HCL Technolo- gies Roshni Nadar Malhotra on Thursday (February 19) described Artificial Intelligence (AI) as a structural shift rather than a routine technology cycle, emphasising the need for India to lay thrust on Intel- lectual Property-led value creation. Speaking at the India AI Impact Summit 2026, Malhotra said AI repre- sents a defining moment in technologi- cal history, comparable to the advent of the printing press and the Internet. “Artificial intelligence is no longer something we switch on and switch off. It is with us at all times. AI is becoming an assistant, a guide, a teacher, some- times even a companion,” she said. Highlighting the speed and scale of AI adoption, Malhotra emphasised that “when knowledge becomes program- mable, industries are redefined rather than merely evolving.” “While previous decades were defined by the dial-up modem, mobile ringtones, and smartphone screens, the present era is shaped by the invis- ible hum of neural networks,” she said. “The competitive edge in the AI era is not computing power. It is clarity of thinking,” Malhotra said, describing AI as “a mirror” that reflects how respon- sibly societies deploy and govern the technology. “The real question is not what AI can do, but how responsibly we will deploy it, how inclusively we will scale it, and how wisely we will govern it,” she said. Calling for a strategic pivot, the HCL Technologies Chairperson outlined three priorities for India: moving from scale-led growth to IP-led value cre- ation, shifting from adopting technolo- gies to building them, and treating compute as digital public infrastruc- ture. “Services scale with effort. IP scales infinitely,” she said. -ANI PHOTO:COURTESY ANI OpenAI CEO Sam Altman speaking to ANI.