Prime Minister Narendra Modi chaired a roundtable with Indian AI start-ups ahead of the India AI Impact Summit 2026, where twelve start-ups selected under the Foundation Model Pillar presented their work across healthcare, multilingual and Indian-language AI models, engineering simulations, material research, data analytics and generative AI. The Prime Minister highlighted the role of artificial intelligence in driving societal transformation and said startups and AI entrepreneurs are co-architects of India’s future. He emphasised the need for ethical, unbiased, transparent AI rooted in data privacy and supportive of local languages. Start-ups noted the rapid growth of India’s AI ecosystem, improved access to computing power and funding, and said the centre of AI innovation is increasingly shifting towards India, with a focus on inclusive, India-first solutions.