As AI investment accelerates, India leads global digital transformation

Indian enterprises are projected to invest nearly 11% of their revenues in digital transformation through 2030, far exceeding the average investment seen across developing markets, according to Global System for Mobile Communications Association (GSMA) analysis presented at the India AI Impact Summit 2026.

This is a flagship government-backed event co-hosted by the Department of Telecommunications (DoT), the Cellular Operators Association of India (COAI) and Software Technology Parks of India (STPI), bringing together global and domestic stakeholders to set the agenda for India’s AI future.

The figures were cited by Jeanette Whyte, Head of Public Policy for Asia-Pacific at GSMA, during the Summit’s second day, in the session «Generative AI and Future Networks».

«India ranks among the top five countries globally for digital transformation. India has shown the world what can happen when digital infrastructure and public service align», Whyte said.

She pointed to India’s broader Digital Public Infrastructure (DPI)—encompassing Aadhaar, the Unified Payments Interface (UPI) and the wider DPI ecosystem—as a foundation that positions the country not merely to adopt AI, but to actively shape its governance, standards, and global trajectory. «No single organisation or country can navigate this landscape alone», Whyte added, calling for open international collaboration across networks, devices, clouds and data flows.

The GSMA executive also stressed the importance of a balanced policy approach, warning that the network layer—which "ultimately carries the AI intelligence, the data, and the experiences that AI enables«—frequently receives less policy support than other parts of the digital infrastructure stack. She argued that trust must underpin all digital progress: «Responsible data practices and governance frameworks that protect users while empowering innovation. Trust is not a nice path, but it is the foundation of digital progress.»

India’s digital ambitions are already attracting significant capital. Global hyperscalers, including Google, Amazon and Microsoft, alongside Indian conglomerates such as Reliance, Tata and Adani Group, have committed multi-billion-dollar investments in data centres to power AI infrastructure across the country. Adani Enterprises alone announced plans to invest $100 billion in renewable-powered AI-ready data centres by 2035.

The momentum around India’s AI investment outlook directly complements the growing strategic alignment between India and Russia in the technology domain. Sberbank India has previously examined how cybersecurity and AI are emerging as new growth drivers for both nations, with bilateral cooperation increasingly spanning research and R&D centres, joint ventures and cross-border digital infrastructure. The standardisation of AI solutions within Indian—Russian frameworks for BRICS represents another key pillar of this partnership, ensuring that, as India scales its digital transformation, the governance and technical standards are shaped together with trusted partners.

Source: EnterpriseAI.com