With the AI Impact Summit underway, global leaders and technology experts are gathering in Delhi to discuss the innovation and governance directions of artificial intelligence (AI). This is happening at a time of deep contradiction (and, frankly, confusion) about what is the “right” way to govern AI that encourages strategic creation while recognizing the known and unknown risks it poses.
As host of the Summit, India has uniquely positioned itself by offering a “Third Way” for AI governance, which recognizes the opportunities for countries to enter AI markets while recognizing that existing governance strategies do not transfer clearly to the global majority. Case in point: the EU’s strict compliance regime, the US’s hands-off approach, and China’s centralized state model were designed for different economic contexts and political traditions. India needs something different.
A different approach
In November 2025, the Indian government released its AI governance guidelines. As Amlan Mohanty, one of the architects of the framework, reflected in a recent keyboardwtopia In the essay, the guidelines represent a distinctive approach: not simply a regulatory framework, focused on risk mitigation, but a governance framework encompassing adoption, dissemination, diplomacy and capacity development. Prioritizes scaling up AI for inclusive development (in healthcare, agriculture, education and public administration) while working through existing legal structures rather than creating stand-alone legislation on AI. It is designed to be agile and forward-thinking, translating high-level principles into practical guidelines and leaving room for evolution as the technology matures.
This approach is already taking shape. On February 10, the government announced amendments to the Information Technology (Intermediary Guidelines and Digital Media Ethics Code) Rules, making it mandatory for intermediary tools and platforms to label AI-generated information and imposing a three-hour removal period for harmful content. This is the first case in which a government requires disclosure of AI generation. But implementation and enforcement at scale, against the tech giants and in a way that respects human rights and democratic norms, will be difficult without international coordination.
For the Global South, this is hugely important. The concentration of AI investment, particularly among a handful of private actors in the Global North, creates an uneven landscape for AI diffusion and governance. Reliance on external or proprietary AI systems creates existing and new context-based risks. They also make it difficult for middle powers to leverage AI tools in ways that meet their specific economic and social needs.
India’s approach – which emphasizes strategic autonomy, public-private partnerships and governance tailored to the local context – offers an alternative path. Recognizes the need for a research infrastructure among middle powers, including, but not limited to, shared security assessment frameworks, collaborative research networks, and mechanisms to pool knowledge on risks that no country can assess alone. Given its size, scale and leadership role in AI infrastructure, as well as its historical success in digital development and diffusion of access, India is uniquely positioned to convene this coordination.
Critical gap
However, governance coordination means little if the framework itself has gaps. A governance approach that accelerates AI adoption without offering protections to displaced workers is not a balanced model for others to follow. It’s simply a faster version of what’s already happening among prominent AI superpowers. Without a shared understanding of minimum measures to demand transparency and accountability from AI developers, protect whistleblowers and vulnerable populations from adverse harm, and foster public awareness and agency, even well-intentioned coordination is likely to fail. In short, what is needed is a corresponding framework for the people on whom that innovation depends.
The AI Impact Summit represents a genuine opportunity to shape what inclusive coordination of AI governance could look like: strong public-private partnerships across the technology stack that distribute the gains more equitably and position India as a hub for agile collective governance among middle powers. For nations seeking development paths compatible with their strategic interests and institutional capabilities, the Indian model has real appeal.
The next 12 months will determine whether India’s model can successfully integrate innovation, security and human well-being or whether gaps create the instability that governance aims to prevent. The rest of the world is watching closely. The decisions India makes now will determine whether the “Third Way” becomes a model worth following.
Uma Kalkar is an AI policy and governance strategist specializing in international AI governance diplomacy and coordination; she is strategy lead at AI Safety Connect
Published – February 19, 2026 01:36 am IST