Pre-budget Wishlist: “Pivot from viewing AI as a mere software vertical to treating it as strategic national infrastructure”

As India prepares for the Union Budget 2026, Artificial Intelligence has emerged as a central theme in industry expectations, moving well beyond experimentation into the realm of economic strategy. From enterprise automation and digital public infrastructure to skilling and compute capacity, businesses are looking to the government for policy clarity and targeted investments that can accelerate AI adoption at scale. With global competition intensifying and AI increasingly shaping productivity, competitiveness, and employment, this year’s budget is being closely watched for signals on how decisively India plans to position itself in the global AI race.

Read more: Pre-Budget Wishlist: What industry wants from India’s next budget

The Tech Panda asked AI industry players what their expectations are from the upcoming Union Budget 2026.

Akhil Nair, Founder & CEO, BigTrunk Communications

“Marketing has become a core growth driver of India’s digital economy, but policy support now needs to catch ...