Union IT Minister Ashwini Vaishnaw has apologised for the issues faced during Day 1 of the India AI Impact Summit. Vaishnaw, while speaking to reporters on Day 2 of the summit, said that the ministry will be taking efforts to make it smoother and more enjoyable for the attendees.
“Whatever feedback you have, please share with us. We are open-minded. We have a war room operating right now… any issue which is there, please report to us. We definitely will take efforts to make it smoother and make it more enjoyable for all of you,” Vaishnaw was quoted by PTI as saying.
“If anybody has faced any problems yesterday, my apologies for that. We are working very hard. The entire team is working day and night to organise this world’s biggest AI summit, and we’ll make all efforts to make sure it is enjoyable for all of you,” he added.
Chaos ensues at Bharat Mandapam:
Notably, the first day of the AI Impact Summit had descended into chaos as attendees of the summit faced patchy mobile network and a breakdown in organisation.
Some companies had also claimed that their products were stolen after exhibitors were asked to vacate the area ahead of PM Modi’s visit.
Bengaluru-based startup Neosapien’s founder Dhananjay Yadav had written about his woes in a post on X. Yadav wrote, “I came genuinely excited, it was the first time the summit was being hosted in India, and I wanted to show up personally to support the ecosystem and the government’s push.”
“Gates were closed from 12–6pm. Much, much longer than expected. Later we found out that our wearables were stolen. Think about this: We paid for flights, accommodation, logistics and even the booth, only to see our wearables disappear inside a high-security zone,” he added.
Meanwhile, social media was filled with complaints from users about issues ranging from long queues and restricted movement inside the venue to problems with carrying some personal-use items. Some users said that attendees, startup founders and exhibitors were left waiting outside for hours without access to water or food due to security restrictions.
Several other users had flagged the lack of use of AI at the technology-focused event, where they faced the absence of AI-enabled badge printing and stall navigation, leading to long queues for entry to the marquee event.
