India’s AI success in 2026 lies not in breakthroughs but in the blueprint

By Prasad Kulkarni, Leader – GCC Strategy and Operations, SAS India

Over the past few years, India has been the engine room of global technology and in 2026, it is on its way to become the control tower for AI too. The combination of deep engineering talent and maturing Global Capability Centers is moving India from execution to authorship. The question is no longer whether India will contribute to AI’s future, but how India will set its terms.

How India is shaping global AI mandates
India’s influence begins with scale and pragmatism. You need durable governance, transparent decisioning, model lineage, and continuous monitoring built in from day one. That discipline is now traveling outward. Global teams are adopting the operating patterns codified in India’s programs across model cards as living documents, clear thresholds for acceptable model drift, independent review boards for highrisk use cases, and ...