Global AI Summit: Is Artificial Intelligence the New Power Game?
Prime Minister Narendra Modi at Bharat Mandapam to unveil the AI Impact Summit (Image Vaishnaw on X)
From data sovereignty to chip wars and governance dilemmas, India positions itself at the centre of the global AI power equation
By Sidharth Mishra
New Delhi, February 17, 2026 — As India hosts a global AI Summit, the conversation around power, technology, and governance acquires a sharper urgency. The meaning of power in international politics has never been static. Land, military strength, industrial capacity, and financial dominance have each defined different eras.
Today, Artificial Intelligence (AI) is rapidly joining that lineage — not simply as a tool of innovation, but as a determinant of geopolitical influence, economic competitiveness, and societal transformation.
The summit is not merely a diplomatic gathering or a technology showcase. It symbolizes a recognition that AI has moved from research labs into the core of statecraft. Governments are no longer passive observers of technological change; they are active participants shaping its direction, rules, and boundaries.
Data
At the heart of AI’s strategic significance lies data. AI systems learn, adapt, and improve through vast datasets. Countries that can generate, structure, and responsibly utilize data possess a foundational advantage.
Yet data is not a conventional resource. It is intertwined with questions of privacy, sovereignty, security, and civil liberties. Debates around cross-border data flows, localization requirements, and digital rights are therefore inseparable from discussions about AI leadership.
The New Delhi summit underscores how data governance has become a global policy concern rather than a purely technical one.
Computing Power
Equally critical is computing power, the invisible engine behind AI capabilities. Training advanced AI models requires enormous processing capacity, dependent on sophisticated semiconductor technologies and high-performance computing infrastructure. Control over chip supply chains has already emerged as a fault line in international relations.
Export restrictions, technological alliances, and industrial policies increasingly reflect strategic calculations rather than market logic. Against this backdrop, discussions in New Delhi inevitably touch upon technological dependencies, resilience, and the risks of concentration.
Human Capital
A third pillar of the AI power equation is human capital. Algorithms may define AI systems, but human expertise drives their creation and application. Talent mobility, research ecosystems, and innovation networks now shape national competitiveness as much as natural resources once did. The global contest is no longer about preventing brain drain, but about fostering environments that attract and retain cutting-edge expertise. For India, hosting the summit reinforces its aspiration to be seen not only as a consumer of technology but as a contributor to global AI research and development.
Promise & Risk
However, the promise of AI is inseparable from its risks, a theme that looms large over global policy dialogues. AI introduces big ethical, social, and security challenges. Autonomous weapons systems raise questions about accountability in warfare. Deepfakes blur the boundary between truth and fabrication. Algorithmic biases risk embedding structural inequalities into automated decision-making. Cyber vulnerabilities expand alongside digital capabilities. Without credible regulatory frameworks, technological acceleration could outpace institutional safeguards, eroding public trust and social stability.
Governance Dilemma
This is where the New Delhi AI Summit assumes deeper significance. It offers a platform to move beyond technological optimism and confront governance dilemmas. The central question is not whether AI should be regulated, but how regulation can balance innovation with responsibility. Excessive constraints may stifle progress, while weak oversight could magnify harm. The search for equilibrium requires international cooperation, shared norms, and adaptive policy thinking.
For India, the summit arrives at a pivotal moment. The country’s digital public infrastructure, expanding startup ecosystem, and vast user base present unique opportunities in AI deployment. Sectors ranging from healthcare and agriculture to education and urban governance could benefit from intelligent systems.
Yet structural challenges persist, like uneven digital access, skill gaps, research funding limitations, and the need for clear institutional frameworks. Leadership in AI cannot rest solely on market dynamism; it demands sustained investments in education, interdisciplinary research, and regulatory clarity.
Voice of Global South
Crucially, India’s position also reflects a broader voice from the Global South. Much of the global AI discourse has been dominated by technologically advanced economies. Developing nations often confront a different set of concerns like equitable access, capacity building, linguistic diversity, and the socioeconomic consequences of automation. By convening stakeholders in New Delhi, the summit broadens the conversation, emphasizing that AI governance must accommodate diverse developmental realities rather than impose uniform templates.
Trust
Beyond economics and strategy lies a subtler dimension of AI power that is trust. Technological superiority alone does not guarantee influence. Systems perceived as opaque, intrusive, or biased risk resistance and backlash. Public confidence depends on transparency, accountability, and ethical design. Societies that embed human-centric principles into AI adoption are more likely to harness its benefits sustainably. In this sense, governance frameworks are not obstacles to innovation but enablers of legitimacy.
The New Delhi summit thus represents more than a milestone event. It showcases how nations understand technological power. AI is neither a neutral instrument nor an inevitable force; it is shaped by policy choices, institutional values, and collective priorities. International collaboration, despite geopolitical rivalries, remains indispensable. Fragmented approaches to AI governance could deepen inequalities and intensify conflicts, while cooperative mechanisms could mitigate risks and expand shared gains.
Ultimately, the new power game defined by AI is not solely about algorithms, data centers, or chips. It is also about vision, the capacity of societies and governments to steer technological change toward inclusive and responsible outcomes. As delegates deliberate in New Delhi, the deeper challenge becomes clear, to ensure that the rise of intelligent machines will strengthen human agency rather than diminishes it.
In that pursuit, the summit’s true legacy may not lie in declarations or partnerships alone, but in advancing a global consensus that AI’s future must be guided as much by ethical wisdom and democratic accountability as by technical ingenuity.
(This is an opinion piece. Views expressed are author’s own.)
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