A global artificial intelligence summit started in New Delhi on Monday. Big leaders and tech CEOs gathered to discuss major AI issues like jobs, child safety, and global rules. India expects tens of thousands of visitors, including 20 national leaders and 45 minister-level delegations. Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi called it “further proof that our country is progressing rapidly in the field of science and technology.” The event will last five days and features discussions on AI innovation, responsible use, and collaboration. The summit aims to create a “shared roadmap for global AI governance and collaboration.” It is the biggest edition yet, after past meetings in Paris, Seoul, and Britain. Tech giants like OpenAI’s Sam Altman and Google’s Sundar Pichai are present. Panels cover diverse topics, such as making India’s dangerous roads safer and how South Asian women engage with AI. However, some experts doubt if world leaders like Modi, France’s Emmanuel Macron, and Brazil’s Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva will make strong moves to regulate AI giants. Amba Kak of the AI Now Institute commented, “Industry voluntary commitments have largely been narrow ‘self-regulatory’ frameworks that position AI companies to continue to grade their own homework.” The summit’s loose themes are “people, progress, planet” called the three “sutras.” AI safety, including tackling misinformation and deepfakes, remains a key priority. Kelly Forbes, director of AI Asia Pacific Institute, said there is potential to make changes but warned about delayed action harming minors. India hosts the summit as the first developing country to do so. Its IT ministry said the summit aims to shape “a shared vision for AI that truly serves the many, not just the few.” India jumped to third place in global AI competitiveness last year, overtaking South Korea and Japan. Yet experts say India is still far from rivaling the US and China. AI poses job risks worldwide, especially in software, factories, and creative fields. India’s large call centre sector faces threats from AI voice tools. Startup co-founder Peush Bery said, “AI voice tools will definitely remove that job within a few years,” but he added, “New jobs come up, new fields come up,” such as AI data work for accent recognition. The summit highlights the urgent global debate on how to manage AI’s powerful technology safely and fairly.