Odisha AI summit commences Friday, precursor to India meet in February
BHUBANESWAR: Close on the heels of Odisha Pharma Summit, the state government is going to host a two-day AI Summit here from Friday (December 19).
Minister for Electronics & Information Technology (E&IT) Mukesh Mahaling told mediapersons on Wednesday that the AI summit will be an official precursor to the India AI Impact Summit 2026, scheduled to be held in New Delhi in February.
He said the state government is setting the stage to position Odisha as one of India’s forerunners in the adoption and deployment of artificial intelligence across governance and key public sectors.
An IndiaAI working group meeting, jointly convened by MeitY and the state government, is scheduled for Thursday. The session will bring together key stakeholders from central and state governments, academia and industry to deliberate on operationalising the IndiaAI Mission, with a focus on data infrastructure, computer skilling and sectoral AI use cases.
“Odisha is taking a future-ready approach to technology-led growth. With the Odisha AI Policy 2025, alongside progressive policies for fintech, global capability centres and advanced electronics, we are building a clear, responsible and investor-friendly framework for population-scale AI adoption,” Mahaling said.
He said the state’s focus is not just on infrastructure but on creating a complete innovation ecosystem backed by strong governance, world-class digital capabilities, and long-term policy certainty.
Principal secretary to E&IT department Vishal Dev said the summit aims to showcase how the state has already begun implementing AI solutions into core government functions and priority sectors, while simultaneously investing in capacity building and institutional readiness.
The summit will bring together policymakers, industry leaders, researchers and technology experts from across India and beyond to align on Odisha’s long-term AI priorities and partnerships, he added.