Chaos, swelling crowds, traffic snarls mark opening of India AI Impact Summit
The India AI Impact Summit 2026 opened at Bharat Mandapam in New Delhi to confusion and poor crowd management. As registered visitors crowded convention halls, eager to see demonstrations of AI technologies, unclear instructions created disarray.
Foreign and national speakers were stranded outside in swelling crowds, waiting for the gates to open and for lack of clarity on access. There appeared to be no clear differentiation between individuals holding physical passes and those without them. Members of the media, despite carrying valid accreditation, were similarly left waiting without guidance.
Many sessions became so overcrowded that people were forced to sit on staircases and even on the floors due to limited seating and unexpectedly high attendance. The heavy security presence, with repeated checks at different buildings and expo areas, further added to the frustration, as attendees had to present their IDs and passes multiple times.
Several attendees, visitors, and invitees were unclear about the summit’s central focus on AI’s impact and transformative potential, with general visitors more interested in spotting well-known personalities and taking photographs. Further, simultaneous sessions, exhibitions, and parallel events created widespread uncertainty about schedules and venues.
“There was a lot of buzz around AI. I am here to see what it is exactly and how this will change the
intelligence of humans,” said Sukriti Mishra, a seventh semester AI BTech student from Noida. Dr Kaushal Kant Mishra, and ortho surgeon at Fortis said he was here to learn and see the future of robotic surgery which will be AI enabled in recent future.
Excitement reached its peak during a session featuring popular podcaster Raj Shamani, as young attendees crowded the hall to take pictures and request autographs. Amid the commotion, a projector screen was accidentally damaged.
Meanwhile, outside the Bharat Mandapam, traffic choked and commuters in Central Delhi had a
harrowing experience. Long queues of vehicles and near-zero movement were reported on key arterial routes and transport hubs, including the Delhi-Meerut Expressway near Sarai Kale Khan, the DND Flyway, the Vikas Marg-ITO stretch, Naraina, the Delhi Cantt Metro station area, and the Old Delhi Railway Station-Pul Mithai corridor.
Keeping in view the snarls expected over the week, the Central Board of Secondary Examinations has advised students to reach examination centers in advance, airliners have too have warned passengers of possible traffic blockades due to regular movements of high profile dignitaries as well as Heads of several States and have urged travelers to reach the airport using the metro.
Huge billboards around the city have been put up welcoming delegates, speakers and guests. High-profile speakers — from Sundar Pichai of Alphabet, Sam Altman of OpenAI and Dario Amodei of Anthropic — haven’t even arrived in the country. Their sessions start not before Wednesday.
India is hosting the AI Impact Summit 2026 in Delhi from February 16-20 at the Bharat Mandapam, which is expected to draw delegates from more than 30 countries, including ministers, senior officials, foreign representatives and members of international organisations.
Delhi Police has deployed more than 10,000 personnel across the city, with nearly 5,000 traffic staff managing vehicular movement, diversions and VIP routes. Police have also issued advisories, urging commuters to plan their travel and keep buffer time during peak hours.
