Overview
- Ankur Vora, the foundation’s chief strategy officer and head of its Africa and India offices, delivered remarks in place of Gates.
- The no-show capped days of mixed signals as Gates’ name disappeared from some materials before the foundation had insisted he would speak as planned.
- Government sources said officials worried his appearance could overshadow the summit, while a senior IT ministry official said Gates withdrew without government pressure.
- The event grappled with separate image issues, including a Chinese-made robot dog presented as an Indian creation, traffic and access disruptions, and attendee complaints.
- Despite the turbulence, organizers reported over $200 billion in AI infrastructure commitments, including Reliance’s $110 billion plan and a Tata–OpenAI partnership.