India is working to transform itself into the world's innovation partner and deepen global collaboration in emerging technologies, Union Commerce and Industry Minister Piyush Goyal said on Sunday. Addressing the gathering at the inauguration of the Bharat Innovates summit in Nice, France, Goyal said that while the theme of Bharat Innovates is to serve as a global accelerator for India's innovation ecosystem, the broader objective is to translate that vision into concrete action and position India as a trusted innovation partner for the world.
"While the theme of Bharat Innovates is a global accelerator for India's education system, the real spirit is to concretise our efforts to be the world's innovation partner,” he said. “The year 2026, which is being celebrated as the India-France Year of Innovation, gives this initiative an appropriate setting.
Friends, we are meeting at a moment of uncertainty when the churn in the world of geopolitics is meeting the churn of frontier technology," Goyal noted. Underscoring the growing strategic partnership between India and France, Goyal noted that bilateral ties were elevated to a Special Global Strategic Partnership this year.
He said both countries have been working closely to shape global conversations around innovation and artificial intelligence. The minister recalled that Prime Minister Narendra Modi co-chaired the AI Action Summit in Paris in February 2025, while French President Emmanuel Macron joined India for the AI Impact Summit in February 2026.
"To our French partners, I urge you to use this opportunity to build meaningful partnerships. And I would invite our French friends to visit India, invest in India, design in India, innovate in India, and manufacture in India, both for the large domestic market and export from India to the rest of the world," Goyal mentioned.
The Bharat Innovates summit was jointly inaugurated by Prime Minister Modi and French President Macron. The event brings together startups, investors, entrepreneurs, technology leaders and policymakers from India, France and other countries to explore new avenues for innovation, investment and cross-border collaboration.