New Delhi, February 19 – Brazilian President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva showered praise on India’s India AI Impact Summit, saluting the nation’s ancient contributions to binary knowledge that underpin modern computing. Speaking at the inauguration of the 2026 summit alongside Prime Minister Narendra Modi, Lula declared that the digital world has finally come home.
In a post on X, Lula expressed delight at participating in the first AI Impact Summit hosted in the Global South. ‘Here in Delhi, the digital world has returned to its land,’ he wrote, crediting Indian mathematicians for inventing the binary system over 2,000 years ago. This event arrives at a pivotal moment, with society at a crossroads amid the Fourth Industrial Revolution’s rapid pace and the retreat of multilateralism.
Lula emphasized AI’s strategic role in global governance. ‘Every high-impact technological innovation has a dual nature,’ he noted, drawing parallels to aviation, atomic energy, genetic engineering, and the space race. These can bring immense benefits or profound harms, demanding ethical and political scrutiny.
Algorithms, he warned, are not mere mathematical codes but parts of complex power structures. Without inclusive efforts, AI will exacerbate existing inequalities. Computational power, infrastructure, and capital are essential, yet access remains uneven.
During his state visit from February 18-22, Lula will attend the second day of the summit and hold bilateral talks with PM Modi on February 21. Earlier, he met Google CEO Sundar Pichai, discussing Google’s investments in Brazil, including an engineering center in Sao Paulo and partnerships in digital public services.
Lula shared that Pichai highlighted Brazil’s importance to Google, while he outlined Brazil’s AI vision, plans for data centers, and government actions in digital services. This summit underscores the Global South’s rising voice in shaping AI’s future, blending historical pride with forward-looking diplomacy.