Overview
- The Gates Foundation confirmed Gates would not deliver his planned address, saying the decision aimed to keep attention on the summit’s priorities.
- Reporting links the withdrawal to Gates being mentioned in Jeffrey Epstein–related files, a claim not independently confirmed in the statements.
- Nvidia chief Jensen Huang also canceled his appearance, according to media reports.
- Exhibition halls were unexpectedly closed to the public and Galgotias University was ejected after staff presented a commercially available Chinese robot dog as their own.
- Traffic disruptions and repeated road closures for VIP convoys fueled local frustration as India sought to present the gathering as a leading Global South forum on AI governance.