India AI Impact Summit: Prime Minister Narendra Modi hosted the Day 4 of the event in the presence of industry leaders and delegates including influential names – Google CEO Sundar Pichai, OpenAI CEO Sam Altman, Anthropic CEO Dario Amodei and more. After delivering the keynotes, a brief but telling moment between two of the world’s most influential AI leaders stole the spotlight at the mega AI event, offering a glimpse of competitive behaviour.
During a group photo with Prime Minister Narendra Modi and top technology executives, Sam Altman of OpenAI and Dario Amodei of Anthropic seemed unsure whether to clasp hands. Instead, the two settled on a raised-fist gesture, a subtle but noticeable departure from the more traditional pose used by others onstage.
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The image quickly became viral online, prompting playful commentary. One startup founder joked that artificial general intelligence might arrive the day the two executives decide to hold hands, referring to their companies’ intense rivalry. Amodei, for example, previously led OpenAI’s research efforts before leaving in 2021 to co-found Anthropic with several former colleagues.
The summit, held at Bharat Mandapam, drew hundreds of global AI leaders, academics, and technology executives to discuss the next stage of AI development.
Amodei previously addressed delegates, stating that an inflection point was rapidly approaching. He claimed that AI systems are advancing at an exponential rate and could soon outperform humans in a variety of cognitive tasks. While such progress could lead to breakthroughs in healthcare and poverty reduction, he warned that if not properly managed, the same tools could amplify economic disruption and misuse.
On the other hand, Altman maintained optimism about India’s role in AI. He stated that the country is not only adopting AI but also emerging as a major force in shaping the future. As per him, India’s scale of usage and developer energy makes it among the most important markets.