Davos 2026: Focus on AI applications, not core models, Demis Hassabis tells India at WEF
Demis Hassabis stated that applied AI was the most appropriate focus for India at this stage and advised working closely with existing foundation model providders.
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India should concentrate on applied artificial intelligence rather than building new foundation models, as there are already sufficient providers operating globally, Google DeepMind chief executive Demis Hassabis said in an interview with Moneycontrol at the World Economic Forum in Davos on January 20.
Hassabis stated that applied AI was the most appropriate focus for India at this stage and advised working closely with existing foundation model providers. His comments come amid an ongoing debate within India’s technology and startup ecosystem over whether the country should invest in developing foundational AI models or prioritise the application layer.
The DeepMind chief also said India is a strategically important market for Google, noting that a significant amount of the company’s AI research is carried out at its Bengaluru office. He added that India is Google’s largest market by user base and a key region for the expansion of its artificial intelligence initiatives.
Hassabis further stated that Indian users have shown strong enthusiasm for AI adoption and that the technology is likely to deliver substantial economic benefits for the country.
He is expected to make his first visit to India next month to attend the India AI Impact Summit scheduled from February 15 to 20. Hassabis informed Moneycontrol that he has not previously visited India and is looking forward to participating in the summit and meeting the local DeepMind team.
The discussion reflects a wider divide within India’s technology leadership. Infosys chairman Nandan Nilekani has argued that India should position itself as the global capital for AI use cases rather than competing in the highly contested race to build large language models. In contrast, entrepreneurs such as Sarvam AI co-founder Vivek Raghavan have warned that without sovereign AI models, India risks becoming a digital colony.
Global AI researchers have also underlined the geopolitical stakes involved. AI pioneer Yoshua Bengio previously told Moneycontrol in January 2025 that countries investing in their own AI systems would gain a strategic geopolitical advantage, adding that governments need to fund and incentivise foundational model development.
Over the past year, the Indian government has selected around 12 companies, including Sarvam, Tech Mahindra, Gnani.ai and Gan AI, to develop foundational large language models as part of its national AI strategy.
