On May 28, Inc42 hosted the third edition of the Inc42 AI Summit 2026 at Sheraton Grand, Bengaluru, bringing together more than 600 founders, AI builders, enterprise leaders, and investors under one roof.
The strong turnout marked the overwhelming interest in the Summit, which received over 7,000 pre-registrations and 1,500 paid applications, with only around one-third of applicants ultimately making the cut. With over 60 speakers and a packed agenda across 20+ sessions, roundtables and workshops, the Inc42 AI Summit 2026 brought together some of the leading voices in India’s AI ecosystem for candid conversations on the opportunities, challenges and real-world applications of AI.
The discussions went beyond the hype to explore a simple but critical question — what does it take to move AI from experimentation to large-scale deployment in India?
Across sessions, speakers unpacked the realities of building and scaling AI businesses, covering everything from agentic AI systems and enterprise adoption to AI-powered fintech infrastructure, ecommerce transformation and the challenges of turning AI interest into paying customers.
Discussions also explored what investors are looking for in the next wave of AI startups and the common pitfalls that prevent companies from scaling. Beyond the tech, the conversations also revolved around the operational and commercial playbooks shaping India’s AI ecosystem.
Industry leaders like V Vaidyanathan, MD and CEO, IDFC First Bank; Rahul Chari, cofounder and CTO, PhonePe; Rishikesh SR, cofounder, Rapido; Mohit Saxena, cofounder and CTO, InMobi; Ish Babbar, cofounder and CTO, InsuranceDekho; Vaibhav Khandelwal, cofounder and CTO, Shadowfax, and Anish Achuthan, cofounder and CEO, Open Financial Technologies among others, shared their playbooks for building sustainable competitive advantages in an increasingly crowded market.
For Vaidyanathan, technology remains the cornerstone of long-term growth. Reflecting on IDFC First Bank’s journey, he said that combining a customer-first mindset with technology is the only way to achieve scale.
“Our magic carpet is technology. If we had gone the traditional way, we would not be anywhere close to the growth we have seen in the past seven years,” he added.
Meanwhile, the investors panel underscored the need to look beyond the AI buzzword and assess whether startups are creating genuine value. Beyond discussions on execution and funding strategies, speakers and attendees also grappled with difficult questions.
In one such discussion, InMobi and Glance cofounder and CTO Mohit Saxena pointed to the structural challenges facing the country’s AI ambitions.
“We are competing with the US on one side and China on the other. The US has trillions in funding and access to chipsets, while China is a manufacturing powerhouse,” Saxena said, arguing that India still has significant ground to cover in the AI race.
At the end, all the exchanges brought up a common theme — India has to produce globally competitive AI solutions, and that is only possible when the country can pair innovation and execution with strong infrastructure, talent pipelines and long-term ecosystem support.
But none of these dialogues would’ve been possible without the support of our sponsors and partners, who helped make the Inc42 AI Summit 2026 a significant milestone in India’s AI-first journey. Thank you for powering this movement.
Our Presenting Partner
IDFC FIRST Bank
The private sector bank, formed through the merger of IDFC Bank and Capital First in 2018 under the leadership of V Vaidyanathan, offers a suite of financial products and services across retail, MSME and corporate segments.
With a strong focus on technology-driven banking, customer-first products and ethical practices, IDFC FIRST Bank has built a differentiated franchise centred around transparency and accessibility. The bank continues to support India’s entrepreneurial ecosystem by enabling businesses with tailored financial solutions and long-term partnerships.
IDFC FIRST Bank MD and CEO V Vaidyanathan also joined Vaibhav Vardhan, cofounder and CEO, Inc42 for a fireside chat on ‘The Transformative Role Of AI In Banking’. During the chat, Vaidhyanathan talked about a future where banks proactively solve customer problems instead of waiting for support calls. He also talked about the possibility of AI expanding banking access and inclusion in India, especially for customers without formal credit histories.
Co-Presenting Partners
Skyflow
Skyflow is a data privacy and security company that helps businesses store and manage sensitive customer information safely. Instead of keeping personal data such as names, phone numbers, banking details or health records across multiple systems, companies can store it in Skyflow’s secure data vault.
The platform allows businesses to use customer data when needed while limiting unnecessary exposure. This helps organisations meet privacy regulations, reduce security risks and build greater trust with customers.
At the Inc42 AI Summit 2026, Amruta Moktali, CPO at Skyflow, also participated in a panel discussion titled ‘The Operator Playbook for Building and Scaling Agentic AI Systems That Deliver Real Business ROI.’
Loti AI
Loti AI helps individuals, creators, celebrities and brands protect their digital identity from misuse online. The company specialises in detecting and removing unauthorised content, including AI-generated deepfakes, fake advertisements and impersonation attempts.
Loti AI continuously scans the internet for content that misuses a person’s likeness, voice or brand assets. When harmful or fraudulent content is identified, Loti AI helps clients take action to remove it.
Loti AI’s cofounder and CTO Hirak Chhatbar also joined a panel discussion themed ‘Algorithms, Attention & Distribution In The AI Era’, where he shared insights on how AI is reshaping content discovery, audience engagement and distribution strategies.
Powered By Partners
Intellemo.ai
Intellemo.ai provides AI marketing tools that help businesses create, optimise and manage digital campaigns. The platform uses AI to generate content, analyse audience behaviour and ensure that the campaign reaches the right audience at the right time.
It automates content creation and campaign management and helps businesses reach customers more efficiently. Saurabh Gupta, founder and CEO of Intellemo was also a part of a panel discussion on the topic, ‘How Consumer AI Products Are Winning Distribution And Retention In India.’
Avalara
Avalara develops tax compliance software that helps businesses calculate, collect and file taxes accurately across different regions and jurisdictions. Managing tax regulations can be complex, especially for companies operating in multiple markets.
Its platform automates tax calculations and compliance processes, reducing the risk of errors and regulatory issues. Businesses use Avalara to simplify tax management and stay compliant with changing regulations.
Job Sam Koshy, APAC head – partnerships and alliances, Avalara, participated in the panel discussion titled, ‘The Operator Playbook For Building And Scaling Agentic AI Systems That Deliver Real Business ROI.’
Vobiz.ai
Vobiz.ai is an AI-first telephony infrastructure startup that helps businesses build and scale voice-based AI applications. To put it simply, Vobiz acts as the bridge between AI software and phone networks, allowing companies to deploy AI-powered customer support, sales and communication systems.
The platform is designed for low-latency, real-time conversations and helps developers build voice AI products without dealing with complex telecom infrastructure. Vobiz.ai’s cofounder and CEO Suman Gandham also shared his insights during a session titled ‘How Companies Are Using Voice AI To Reach The Next 500 Million Users’, where he discussed the growing role of voice AI at scale.
kAIgentic
kAIgentic helps businesses capture internal knowledge and turn it into AI agents that can perform business tasks autonomously. Instead of relying on employees to manually share expertise, the platform converts institutional knowledge, workflows and processes into governed AI systems that can assist with operations and decision-making.
Ahmed Mazhari, CEO and founder of kAIgentic, also took part in a session titled ‘The Playbook For Turning Enterprise Interest Into Signed AI Contracts’, where he shared insights on converting enterprise AI demand into commercial engagements.
StockGro
StockGro is a social investing and financial learning platform that allows users to learn about stock markets through virtual investing. Users can create portfolios, participate in market simulations and follow experienced investors.
The platform is designed to make investment education more accessible, allowing users to practise with virtual money before investing real funds. During the Summit, StockGro’s founder and CEO Ajay Lakhotia joined Digio’s Kshitij Shah for a fireside chat on ‘Inside StockGro’s Bet On AI As The Next Investing Edge’, where they explored how AI is shaping the future of investing.
Rubrik
Rubrik offers cybersecurity and data protection solutions that help enterprises back up, secure and recover critical data across cloud, on-premise and hybrid environments.
As cyberattacks and ransomware threats continue to rise, businesses use Rubrik to ensure their data remains protected and recoverable. The company focuses on helping organisations strengthen resilience while maintaining uninterrupted access to important information.
Rubrik’s Vipul Nayak also joined a panel discussion titled ‘How SaaS Companies Are Building Agentic Products Without Breaking Margins.’
Our Associate Partners
Rocketlane
Rocketlane provides software that helps businesses manage customer onboarding, implementation and service delivery after a sale is completed. Its platform combines project management, customer communication, document sharing and workflow tracking in a single solution. It is widely used by SaaS and enterprise technology companies to accelerate customer onboarding and improve project outcomes.
Gupshup
Gupshup is a conversational messaging platform that enables businesses to interact with customers through channels such as WhatsApp, SMS, Instagram and RCS. It helps companies manage customer communication at scale. The platform is widely used by banks, ecommerce firms and consumer brands to improve customer engagement.
Nurix AI
Nurix is an AI startup that builds human-like voice and chat agents that automate enterprise sales, support, and operational workflows. Unlike traditional Q&A chatbots, Nurix’s agents execute real-world actions like qualifying leads, scheduling appointments, and updating internal business systems.
WeWork India
WeWork India provides flexible office spaces for startups, freelancers, small businesses and large enterprises. The company allows businesses to rent office space based on their requirements instead of committing to long-term leases. The company provides fully managed offices with meeting rooms, internet connectivity, security and community events.
DialNexa
DialNexa is a cloud communication platform that streamlines customer interactions across voice calling, sales outreach, and support operations. It enables businesses to manage high-volume conversations efficiently through built-in automation and performance analytics.
Superleap
Superleap is an AI-powered customer relationship management (CRM) platform that helps businesses manage leads, automate customer communication and improve sales productivity. The platform combines lead management, marketing automation, voice intelligence, workflow automation and reporting tools into a single system for revenue teams.
AceCloud
AceCloud provides cloud infrastructure and managed IT services to businesses of all sizes. It helps companies host applications, store data securely and access software remotely through cloud-based environments. Its offerings include virtual desktops, cloud hosting and disaster recovery solutions.
CloudKeeper
CloudKeeper is a cloud cost optimisation and FinOps startup that helps businesses reduce their cloud infrastructure expenses across platforms such as AWS, Google Cloud and Microsoft Azure. The company serves hundreds of global customers and specialises in helping fast-growing companies manage cloud costs at scale.
SoftCore Solutions
SoftCore Solutions is a technology services company that develops software and digital solutions for businesses to improve operations, customer experiences or internal workflows. The company offers services such as software development, system integration and IT consulting to help businesses adopt modern technology without having to build large in-house engineering teams.
Intugle
Intugle.ai is an enterprise data intelligence platform that transforms fragmented business data into AI-ready knowledge. Acting as a critical intelligence layer, it helps AI models understand complex business context, relationships, and workflows. By bridging the gap between raw data and AI systems, the platform enables enterprises to build highly accurate AI agents and generate faster insights.
Rukam Capital
Rukam Capital is an early-stage venture capital firm that invests in consumer products and services companies with strong growth potential. The Delhi NCR-based investment firm backs startups focused on innovation and transformation. It counts startups like GO DESi, Sleepy Owl, Burger Singh, Curefoods, Beco, and Yoho in its portfolio.
Peak XV Partners
Peak XV Partners, previously Sequoia Capital India and SEA, is a global venture capital and growth investing firm that backs startups in India, Southeast Asia, and beyond. The VC firm manages over $9 Bn in capital across 13 funds and has a portfolio of more than 400 companies. Of these, 40 companies have revenue above $100 Mn. Peak XV has invested in 33 Indian unicorns, including Ola and Zomato.
Mobavenue
Mobavenue offers an AI-powered adtech platform that helps digital-first brands advertise more effectively. It helps its clients acquire users, increase engagement, and monetise their digital inventory. The company specialises in digital advertising, performance marketing, and data intelligence to drive ROI.
Brite Systems
Brite Systems is a technology consulting and software services company that works with enterprises and government organisations, helping them modernise systems and improve operational efficiency. The company provides services ranging from software implementation to digital transformation projects.
InterviewPanel
InterviewPanel provides hiring software that helps companies evaluate job candidates more effectively. Its platform enables recruiters and hiring managers to conduct technical assessments, coding tests and structured interviews online, helping reduce hiring time and improve candidate selection.
The post Thank You, Partners, For Making Inc42 AI Summit 2026 A Grand Success appeared first on Inc42 Media.
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