During the NDTV World Summit 2026, Nikhil Kamath addressed India's strategic approach to the artificial intelligence sector. Kamath proposed that India’s competitive advantage lies not in the resource-heavy development of foundational large language models (LLMs), but rather in the creation of specialized applications built atop existing technology platforms.

Kamath’s perspective challenges the prevailing trend of focusing on core AI infrastructure, which is currently dominated by major Silicon Valley firms. By shifting the focus toward application-layer innovation, Kamath suggests that India can better leverage its unique market needs and talent pool. This approach emphasizes the practical utility of AI in solving specific problems rather than the pursuit of general-purpose model development, which requires massive capital expenditure and computing power. While the report highlights Kamath's strategic vision, it does not detail the specific sectors or industries he believes are most ripe for this application-based development, nor does it address potential counterarguments regarding the long-term risks of relying on foreign-built foundational models.