French President Emmanuel Macron on Thursday praised India’s tech growth and said that the country has built a digital system that no other country has. Applauding India’s digital payments system, Macron hailed
New Delhi for creating a digital ecosystem that serves 1.4 billion people.
Speaking at the India AI Impact Summit 2026, French President Emmanuel Macron said, “India has built something that no other country in the world has built. A digital identity for 1.4 billion people. A payment system that now processes 20 billion transactions every month. A health infrastructure that has issued 500 million digital health IDs.”
#WATCH | Delhi: At the #IndiaAIImpactSummit2026, French President Emmanuel Macron says, “India built something that no other country in the world has built. A digital identity for 1.4 billion people. A payment system that now processes 20 billion transactions every month. A… pic.twitter.com/tWLR9X4Gh3
— ANI (@ANI) February 19, 2026
“They call it the India Stack Open Interoperable Sovereign. That is what this summit is about. We are clearly at the beginning of a huge acceleration, and you perfectly described it during your interventions,” he added during his keynote address.
The French President further highlighted a story of a street vendor in Mumbai and said that about 10 years ago, the world told India that 1.4 billion people could not be brought into the digital economy, but the country proved everybody wrong.
“Today, some say AI is a game only the biggest can play. India, France, Europe, together with our partners, those who believe in our approach, companies, governments, investors, might have a different way,” Macron said, adding, “The future of AI will be built by those who combine innovation and responsibility, technology with humanity, and India and France will help to shape this future together.”
Macron Shared AI-Generated Image With PM Modi
On Wednesday, Macron sparked buzz on social media after he shared a creative post featuring an AI-generated image alongside Prime Minister Narendra Modi, signalling excitement for the ongoing AI Impact Summit 2026.
When friends connect, innovation follows. Ready for The AI Impact Summit! pic.twitter.com/oh4700pQ09
— Emmanuel Macron (@EmmanuelMacron) February 18, 2026
The message underscored the strengthening of the Franco-Indian partnership in AI, with initiatives such as the newly inaugurated Indo-French Centre for Artificial Intelligence in Health at AIIMS, in collaboration with Sorbonne University and the Paris Brain Institute.
