As the world stands at the cusp of a new technological epoch, defined by Artificial Intelligence (AI) and deep-tech disruptions, India’s innovation story is no longer emerging in isolation; it is increasingly intertwined with global collaboration, in partnership with leading economies, research institutions, and industry networks to co-create real-world solutions. In the evolving scenario, countries are increasingly eager to collaborate in frontier technologies to gain access to advanced research infrastructure, capital, and robust deployment ecosystems.
Bharat Innovates is India’s defining response to this moment. It is designed to expand access, unlock scale, and connect innovation with global capital, partnerships and deployment. A first-of-its-kind national platform, it takes India’s most promising deep-tech innovations from laboratories to global markets through a rigorous national selection process that curates a cohort of 100 high-potential start-ups from across the country. The upcoming Bharat Innovates event in Nice, France, in June 2026 will bring this cohort to the world, positioning India’s innovation ecosystem at the centre of the global conversation on technology, capital and governance.
The India–France relationship, over the years, has steadily evolved into a dynamic collaboration across defence, climate action, space, digital and emerging technologies and civil nuclear energy. Today, innovation stands as the newest and perhaps the most transformative pillar of this partnership. Under the leadership of Prime Minister Narendra Modi and President Emmanuel Macron, our bilateral relationship has rightfully evolved into a Special Strategic Partnership, with the year 2026 designated as the India–France Year of Innovation.
India and France have a shared ambition to lead in emerging technologies. The Indo-French Centre for the Promotion of Advanced Research (CEFIPRA) has evolved into a crucible of high-end research, fostering a deeper convergence of scientific abilities between our two countries. Academic mobility is expanding, with both countries working towards having 30,000 Indian students in France by 2030. This engagement is now moving beyond collaboration to co-development and co-creation of frontier technologies.
Anchored in three core strengths of scale, systems and institutional depth, India is ready for this moment. We have demonstrated the ability to build and operate digital systems at population scale. Aadhaar provides identity to over 1.4 billion people. UPI processes over 20 billion transactions every month. Platforms like ONDC and India Stack extend this architecture across sectors. It’s proven that Indian models are affordable, scalable, and secure. India’s ability to innovate for billions, frugally yet effectively, unmistakably attracts global attention.
India’s innovation ecosystem is increasingly deepening. Through the National Education Policy 2020, we are integrating education, research, skills, and entrepreneurship into a single continuum. Tinkering Labs, innovation councils, incubators, research parks and Technology Innovation Hubs are seamlessly facilitating the journey from idea to enterprise. With the third-largest start-up ecosystem globally, India today hosts over two lakh recognised start-ups, with 50% share emerging from Tier II and Tier III cities, alongside strong and increasing participation of women entrepreneurs. This reflects a broad-based expansion of India’s innovation capacity.
India’s innovation journey is now at a decisive inflection point, where new and emerging domains are expanding the frontiers of research as also redefining national priorities. Bharat Innovates focuses on 13 priority sectors, including AI, quantum technologies, biotechnology, climate-tech, advanced materials, robotics and cybersecurity. This shift reflects a more strategic, future-ready approach, positioning India as a key driver in shaping the next wave of global innovation.
AI forms the core of this transformation. By 2030, it could contribute nearly $15 trillion to the global economy, with India’s contribution projected at up to $1.7 trillion by 2035. At the India AI Impact Summit 2026, all stakeholders deliberated on responsible and inclusive AI, positioning India as a key voice of Global South in shaping global AI governance and deployment frameworks.
Through the IndiaAI Mission, we are building sovereign AI capability at scale, strengthening compute infrastructure, datasets, and innovation ecosystems. We are embedding intelligence into learning systems making them multilingual, inclusive, and outcome-oriented.
Our approach to AI is clear. It must be human-centric, inclusive, interoperable, and sovereign in capability. It must be built on indigenous datasets, language models and governance frameworks aligned with national priorities. In an era of data concentration and algorithmic bias, we place emphasis on data sovereignty, ethical use, and public accountability. We are aligning institutions to this vision.
The ministry of education has established Centres of Excellence in AI across education, health, sustainable cities, and agriculture. In parallel, the Anusandhan National Research Foundation is strengthening long-term, high-impact research capacity.
We are also investing in multilingual and indigenous AI systems. Initiatives such as Bodhan AI, along with platforms like SARVAM AI, are advancing language intelligence and expanding access to knowledge across Indian languages. This is vital for inclusion and equally critical for building technologies that can work across diverse societies globally.
India is actively unlocking new pathways for deep technology investment. These ventures demand longer timelines and carry higher technical risk. We are strengthening investment frameworks including a ₹10,000 crore Fund of Funds to catalyse deep-tech innovation.
Bharat Innovates brings all these elements together. It connects research institutions, start-ups, investors, and global partners. It enables innovation emerging from Indian campuses to access global capital, markets, and validation. And it offers the world access to a dynamic and scalable innovation ecosystem.
India’s scale and diversity make it a natural aspirant for global deployment of technologies at scale. We are not just participating in the future of innovation: We are helping to define its direction. For innovation to serve the world, it must work across the world’s diversity across languages, geographies, and levels of access.
India offers that scale and ambition to match it. Bharat Innovates is India’s invitation to the world to co-create that future.
Dharmendra Pradhan is Union minister of education. The views expressed are personal
