AI for All: New Delhi Declaration goes global; as many as 88 countries commit to shared benefits

NEW DELHI: As many as 88 countries and international organisations have adopted the New Delhi Declaration on AI Impact, committing to ensure that the benefits of AI are “equitably shared across humanity”, reflecting global consensus on artificial intelligence.

The Declaration, adopted at the conclusion of the AI Impact Summit 2026 here on Saturday, lays out a shared vision for collaborative, trusted, resilient and efficient AI systems, with India leading the call for “AI for All” rooted in equity, access and global cooperation.

The Ministry of External Affairs said on Saturday the India AI Summit was driven by the mantra: welfare for all, happiness for all, a statement said that the participating members pledged to focus on the seven chakras (pillars) of the same.

“This (the advent of AI) calls for further international cooperation and multistakeholder engagement across our countries along the seven Chakras (pillars) of the AI Impact Summit centred around the principles of development of human capital; broadening access for social empowerment; trustworthiness of AI systems; energy efficiency of AI systems; use of AI in science; democratising AI resources; and use of AI for economic growth and social good. In complementarity with existing international and other initiatives, we will work to foster shared understanding, while respecting national sovereignty, on how AI could be made to serve humanity, noting the initiatives across the seven Chakras (pillars) of the Summit,” the MEA said.

Guided by the principle of ‘Sarvajan Hitaya, Sarvajan Sukhaya’ (welfare for all, happiness for all), the document underscores that AI’s promise can be realised only when its benefits are shared across humanity. It calls for strengthened international cooperation, multi-stakeholder engagement and respect for national sovereignty while advancing accessible and trustworthy AI frameworks.

“Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s human-centric AI vision has been accepted by the world. Democratising Artificial Intelligence resources so AI facilities, services and technology can reach everyone in society, which has been accepted by all,” IT Minister Ashwini Vaishnaw told reporters.

The list of endorsing countries includes the US, China, the UK, Russia, France, Australia, Belgium, Bhutan, Brazil, Canada, Denmark, Estonia, Ethiopia, Japan, Italy, Israel, and Ireland.

Indonesia, Iran, Hungary, Greece, Germany, Finland, Mexico, Myanmar, Nepal, the Netherlands, New Zealand, Norway, Oman, The Philippines, Peru, Romania, Rwanda, Senegal, Singapore, South Korea, Spain, Sri Lanka, Sweden, Switzerland, Tanzania, the UAE, Ukraine, the EU, and IFAD are also on the list. In all, about 118 countries participated in the India AI Impact Summit.

Among key outcomes is the Charter for the Democratic Diffusion of AI, a voluntary framework aimed at expanding affordable access to foundational AI resources and strengthening local innovation ecosystems. To advance trust and safety, the declaration highlights Trusted AI Commons — a collaborative repository of technical tools, benchmarks and best practices — as well as development of secure and trustworthy AI systems.

An International Network of AI for Science Institutions will connect scientific communities globally to bolster AI-driven research capabilities, while ‘AI for Social Empowerment platform’ aims to widen equitable access to knowledge and services.

Other deliverables are AI workforce development playbook and reskilling principles (supports AI skilling, reskilling, and literacy, and prepares nations for an AI-driven economy); and guiding principles on resilient and efficient AI (with focus on energy-efficient AI systems, and supported by a playbook on AI infrastructure resilience).

The Declaration also emphasises on energy-efficient AI systems and resilient infrastructure, recognising rising demands of AI places on power and natural resources. Participants reaffirmed their commitment to advancing shared global priorities in AI governance; promoting voluntary, non-binding frameworks; and translating vision into action through continued collaboration.

The broad-based endorsement — cutting across advanced economies, developing nations and multilateral bodies — signals growing convergence around responsible and inclusive AI governance, with the summit positioning India as a key convenor in shaping the global AI agenda.

While earlier global gatherings, including the UK’s AI Safety Summit at Bletchley Park (2023), the Seoul Summit (2024), and the Paris meet (2025) placed significant emphasis on frontier risks, safety guardrails and voluntary commitments, India widened the lens to foreground AI’s developmental impact and real-world applications that can drive economic growth, social inclusion and sustainability. In essence, People, Planet and Progress.

At the AI Action Summit in Paris in February 2025, 61 nations, including India, China, France, Germany, and the African Union, were signatories to the declaration prioritising safe, ethical, open, and inclusive AI development.

The India AI Summit featured a blockbuster lineup of CEOs headlined by Google’s Sundar Pichai, OpenAI’s Sam Altman, Microsoft’s Brad Smith and Anthropic’s Dario Amodei, as discussions spanned most intensely-debated global topics in the tech universe, from AI’s opportunities and risks, all the way to AGI, governance and the future of jobs.

The collective presence of these influential tech voices under one roof elevated the Summit proceedings to a centre of gravity for global tech deliberations throughout the week. The first global AI summit to be hosted in the Global South, the event saw India -- which has consistently championed the voice of developing economies in digital policy forums -- push for equitable access to AI resources and fair rule-making.

The AI Impact Summit secured investment commitments of over USD 250 billion in infrastructure with Vaishnaw on Friday, terming it a “grand success”.