Former NITI Aayog chief Amitabh Kant dropped a bombshell at the India AI Impact Summit 2026 in New Delhi. Big Tech’s voracious appetite for Global South data is training powerhouse LLMs, but developing countries like India are getting shortchanged. Kant’s prescription: Roll out your own AI models using homegrown data to guarantee fair play.
The numbers don’t lie—India pumps out 33% more data than America for LLM development. This treasure trove from emerging economies is the secret sauce behind AI leaps, yet corporations could monopolize the gains, hawking high-cost tools back to originators.
During the panel, Kant hammered home the urgency. AI must be budget-friendly, transparent, and polyglot to truly impact Global South lives. Otherwise, breakneck AI growth fueled by huge funding will breed unprecedented inequality.
Kant zeroed in on the vulnerable: Can AI penetrate below-poverty-line communities? Will it overhaul education, boost health results, and elevate nutrition? He affirmed that AI unlocks feats once deemed impossible.
But neglect the bottom rung, and disparities explode. Kant urged harnessing AI for learning revolutions and societal upliftment. It’s not just tech—it’s about equitable progress.
The summit’s buzz underscores a pivotal shift. Developing nations can’t afford complacency. By building sovereign LLMs, they reclaim narrative control, turning data into destiny-shaping tools for billions.