Prime Minister Narendra Modi and French President Emmanuel Macron on Sunday highlighted growing cooperation between India and France in areas ranging from innovation and artificial intelligence to climate change and civil nuclear energy as they jointly inaugurated Bharat Innovates 2026 in the French city of Nice.
Addressing the event, Macron described India as "a country of innovation" and said the two nations shared "a true partnership in critical sectors like AI and climate change".
"We respect the Make-in-India initiative. France has been part of it in diverse sectors," Macron said.
He also said there was scope to expand bilateral cooperation in the civil nuclear energy sector, including in the area of Small Modular Reactors.
Meanwhile, Modi said that India is no longer just a consumer of global solutions, but a major contributor to them as he laid out New Delhi's vision for a sustainable future for the world through innovation and technology.
He added that the India-France relationship was driven by a shared vision as well as common interests. "Different countries across the world do trade with each other and also strike strategic partnerships with each other. But there are few relations which are driven by shared vision, besides shared interests. India-France relations is one such relationship," Modi said.
"This relationship has connection, conviction, innovation, inspiration, shared values and shared vision. Based on the foundation of this relationship, we have together launched new initiatives and guided new ideas in the past few years," the prime minister said.
"We have also made all efforts to find solutions to global challenges. Be it International Solar Alliance, AI-related dialogues, our partnership from security to sustainability - meaning, our two nations have worked together in finding solutions to challenges related to humanity," he added.
Referring to India's innovation ecosystem, Modi said the country had moved beyond being a consumer of technology and ideas. "India has emerged not as consumer of solutions but as contributor to solutions in the world," he said.
"Innovation is in India's DNA," he added.
He added that innovation, technology and the aspirations of young people were driving India's transformation and shaping its future.
"India is innovating for a sustainable future; India is innovating for the world," Modi said, describing Bharat Innovates as "an invitation to the world to co-create next chapter of global innovation with India".
The event is being held as part of the India-France Year of Innovation, launched earlier this year. Bharat Innovates 2026 is designed to showcase India's deep-tech ecosystem and connect startups, researchers and higher education institutions with global investors and industry leaders.
The event features around 120 Indian innovators, nearly 15 higher education institutions and more than 500 investors, including venture capital firms, corporate leaders and global chief executives. It covers sectors such as advanced computing, semiconductors, space technology, biotechnology, energy, healthcare and manufacturing.
Modi arrived in Nice on Saturday at the start of a week-long visit to France and Slovakia. During his stay in France, he is expected to hold talks with Macron and attend the G7 Summit.
(With inputs from PTI and ANI)
