India is going to lead in AI through entrepreneurship: General Catalyst’s Hemant Taneja
Taneja delivered a keynote address at India AI Impact Summit 2026, a day after General Catalyst said it would invest $5 billion in the country over the next five years.
"The way India is going to lead in artificial intelligence is through entrepreneurship,” General Catalysts’ CEO Hemant Taneja noted while giving a keynote address at India AI Impact Summit 2026.
The address comes a day after General Catalyst said that it will invest $5 billion in India over the next five years, amidst the country’s expanding talent pool, favourable macroeconomic factors, and AI capabilities.
Taneja noted that startups will be the most important institutions of the future, highlighting that Indian entrepreneurs will build the next generation of companies that will not only drive abundance and resilience within India but also position it to be a global leader across different segments.
Drawing on examples of successful startups that have come up in the past, such as Zepto and Policy Bazaar, Taneja added that the trajectories of these companies have instilled confidence in what Indian entrepreneurs are going to build in the future.
Another key point Taneja made was to dismiss the narrative that artificial intelligence can take the jobs of young people and slow down progress. He requested Indian leadership to reject this narrative and instead, lean into it. “I think everybody entering the workforce should be fully empowered with AI, because if you have that kind of productivity behind every single human being entering the workforce, imagine the productivity we can create in every company, in every industry, and how it's gonna unleash the opportunity in the world.”
Edited by Jyoti Narayan