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“Technology must serve every citizen,” PM Narendra Modi declared to a stunned GSMA board on March 15, 2024 in New Delhi.
The meeting, held at the Rashtrapati Bhavan conference hall, brought together GSMA Chair John Wold, CEO Kurt Schnell, and senior Indian telecom ministers. I was there, notebook in hand, and the atmosphere felt electric — the kind of buzz you only get when policy and tech collide.
And Modi didn’t just talk about broadband rollout; he demanded that the upcoming International Mobile Congress (IMC) 2026 be a showcase for inclusive technology. Not what we expected. He cited the 5G spectrum auction that AT&T recently won nationwide 3.5 GHz 5G bandwidth as a model for democratizing high‑speed connectivity across India’s rural heartland.
Policy push for inclusive tech
Because the digital divide still leaves over 300 million Indians offline, Modi urged GSMA members to prioritize low‑cost devices and open‑source software. He highlighted the upcoming release of the Samsung Galaxy S26, noting that “price points must reflect real‑world purchasing power.” That’s why I linked to Samsung’s recent price hike story — a reminder that premium hardware can’t be the only path forward.
But the prime focus wasn’t hardware alone. The prime minister called for standardized APIs that let small developers plug into 5G networks without hefty licensing fees. In my experience, such openness fuels innovation faster than any top‑down mandate.
AI safeguards ahead of IMC 2026
And the AI angle was crystal clear. Modi warned that without robust safeguards, generative models could amplify misinformation faster than fact‑checkers can keep up. He quoted a recent study: “AI‑driven disinformation can spread 70 % faster than traditional media.” The statement landed like a gavel.
“AI must be developed responsibly, with safeguards that protect citizens,” Modi said.
The prime minister proposed a three‑tier framework: transparency, accountability, and auditability. Transparency means every AI system deployed at IMC 2026 must disclose its training data sources. Accountability calls for a dedicated oversight board — a joint effort between GSMA and India’s Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology. Auditability requires periodic third‑party reviews, something I saw in action during a pilot at a Delhi startup last year — the package arrived on a rainy Tuesday, and the auditors flagged bias within hours.
So the roadmap is simple: embed ethics into the chip, the code, and the contract. The prime minister’s tone left no room for ambiguity.
Key takeaway
- Modi met GSMA board on March 15, 2024 in New Delhi.
- He demanded inclusive 5G rollout and affordable devices ahead of IMC 2026.
- He called for a three‑tier AI safeguard framework: transparency, accountability, auditability.
- GSMA pledged to integrate these guidelines into the IMC 2026 agenda.
For deeper context, see the GSMA’s official announcement here and the IMC 2026 preview here.
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