World Bank's World Development Report 2026 on Artificial Intelligence Launched in New Delhi

9 October 2026National

The World Bank released its flagship World Development Report 2026: The Promise of Artificial Intelligence, launched in New Delhi by IT Minister Ashwini Vaishnaw, with MeitY's IndiaAI Mission as India launch partner. It advises developing countries to adopt and adapt open-access models for local languages rather than chase costly frontier models. It finds just over 4% of Indian jobs at immediate automation risk against over one-third in advanced economies, places India's AI talent pool second-largest globally at about 50,460 professionals, and notes a net loss of 200 elite AI researchers (2011-2024). Only 1 of 25 low-income economies has an active national AI strategy.

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The World Development Report has been the World Bank's annual flagship publication since 1978; WDR 2025 was themed on middle-income countries and the 'middle-income trap' | The World Bank Group is headquartered in Washington D.C. and comprises IBRD, IDA, IFC, MIGA and ICSID; India is a founding member | India will host the AI Impact Summit in 2026, the first such summit in the Global South

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