PM Modi meets IndiaAI startups, urges practical AI impact for nation
Why does a prime minister sit down with a handful of fledgling AI firms? On a recent day in New Delhi, Prime Minister Narendra Modi gathered the IndiaAI Mission’s startup cohort, a group that includes Soket AI, to discuss the country’s AI roadmap. The gathering wasn’t a tech showcase; it was a call to align cutting‑edge models with everyday needs.
While the tech buzz is loud, Modi pressed for concrete outcomes—jobs, services, and efficiencies that citizens can actually feel. He framed the startups as “co‑architects of India’s future,” urging them to move beyond lab results and test their algorithms against real‑world challenges. Here’s the thing: the conversation turned sharply toward measurement, not hype.
Upperwal, who runs Soket AI, says the prime minister’s message was clear: design AI with impact in mind, track how it benefits people, and treat the nation’s progress as the ultimate benchmark. The PM highlighted the need to put AI to practical use and to gauge its impact in terms of how it benefits people.
The PM spoke at length about how AI models should be designed with actual impact in mind," said Abhishek Upperwal, CEO of Soket AI. He said the PM highlighted the need to put AI to practical use and to gauge its impact in terms of how it benefits people. Upperwal also said that the India AI Impact Summit would be key for the technology sector.
AI startups, including Avataar, BharatGen, Fractal, GAN, Genloop, Gnani, Intellihealth, Sarvam, Shodh AI, Soket AI, and Tech Mahindra, participated in the discussion. The startups were working across diverse fields such as e-commerce, marketing, engineering simulations, material research, healthcare, medical research and more.
Modi’s remarks underscore a policy push toward tangible AI outcomes. Yet, whether the twelve startups can translate ambition into measurable benefit is still uncertain. The upcoming India AI Impact Summit 2026, slated for next month in Delhi, will showcase at least two large‑language‑model launches, offering a concrete testbed for the call to “put AI to practical use.” Critics note that without clear metrics, assessing impact may prove difficult.
Meanwhile, the AI for ALL: Global Impact Challenge provides a framework, but its criteria remain loosely defined. Soket AI’s CEO Abhishek Upperwal echoed the prime minister’s emphasis on designing models with real‑world effect, a sentiment shared by several participants. If the showcased LLMs deliver on promised societal gains, the initiative could validate the government’s stance.
Conversely, the gap between prototype and deployment could reveal gaps in execution. The roundtable highlighted enthusiasm, but concrete results will determine if the envisioned benefits materialize. Time will reveal the outcome.
Further Reading
- Papers with Code - Latest NLP Research - Papers with Code
- Hugging Face Daily Papers - Hugging Face
- ArXiv CS.CL (Computation and Language) - ArXiv
Related Reading
LLMs & Generative AI OpenAI says AI saves knowledge workers 40‑80 minutes; use yields five‑fold gains
LLMs & Generative AI Grok Chat: AI for debugging, building, testing web apps with voice and images
LLMs & Generative AI Samsung adds Vision AI Companion, an AI Bixby, to TVs for real‑time queries
Common Questions Answered
What did Prime Minister Narendra Modi emphasize about AI models during his meeting with the IndiaAI Mission’s startup cohort?
He emphasized that AI models should be designed with actual impact in mind, focusing on tangible benefits such as jobs, services, and efficiencies for citizens. Modi urged the startups to align cutting‑edge models with everyday needs rather than just showcasing technology.
Which startups were mentioned as part of the IndiaAI Mission’s cohort that met with PM Modi?
The cohort includes Soket AI, Avataar, BharatGen, Fractal, GAN, Genloop, Gnani, Intellihealth, Sarvam, Shodh AI, and Tech Mahindra. These firms were gathered to discuss the nation’s AI roadmap under the IndiaAI Mission.
What is the purpose of the upcoming India AI Impact Summit 2026 according to the article?
The summit aims to showcase at least two large‑language‑model launches and serve as a testbed for evaluating practical AI applications, aligning with Modi’s call to put AI to practical use. The event will provide a concrete platform to measure how AI can deliver real‑world benefits for citizens.
What concerns do critics have regarding the measurement of AI impact as highlighted in the article?
Critics argue that without clear metrics, it will be difficult to assess whether the startups’ AI initiatives deliver measurable benefits. Without defined impact metrics, policymakers and observers may struggle to verify the real‑world outcomes of the AI projects.