INDIA AI Summit 2026: Maya Sherman on Strengthening India–Israel AI and Deep Tech Collaboration

"Platforms like INDIA AI Summit 2026 serve as connective tissue between policy ambition and on-ground implementation. They bring together policymakers, technologists, industry leaders, and end users, translating strategy into pilots, and pilots into population-scale solutions", said Maya Sherman, AI policy researcher, ethicist, and Innovation Diplomat at the Embassy of Israel in New Delhi, in an Exclusive Interview with Peeush Srivastava, Founder and Managing Editor, economicdiplomacy.in.

Maya Sherman, Innovation Attaché at the Embassy of Israel in India

Q. INDIA AI Summit 2026 comes at a defining moment for global technology cooperation. How does Israel view this platform in strengthening India–Israel collaboration in artificial intelligence and deep tech?

A. INDIA AI Summit 2026 comes at a moment when artificial intelligence is firmly established as a strategic economic and diplomatic priority. Israel views this platform as a catalyst to deepen India–Israel collaboration by moving beyond bilateral engagements and startup-led mechanisms, such as India-Israel Industrial R&D and Technological Innovation Fund (I4F), towards system-level partnerships in AI and deep tech.

India brings unparalleled scale, talent, and robust digital public infrastructure, while Israel contributes cutting-edge innovation, applied research, and rapid commercialization capabilities. The summit provides a timely opportunity for both countries to align around shared priorities, while anchoring cooperation in trusted, democratic, and responsible technology ecosystems.

Q. With a high-level Israeli delegation expected at INDIA AI SUMMIT 2026, what strategic priorities is Israel bringing to India through its participation in this summit?

A. Israel’s participation in AI Summit 2026 reflects three core strategic priorities.

First, co-creation rather than market access, meaning working with Indian partners to jointly develop AI solutions that address not only national but also global challenges.

Second, a strong focus on applied AI at scale, particularly in sectors where India’s developmental priorities intersect with Israel’s proven innovation strengths.

Third, advancing responsible innovation frameworks, by aligning closely with India on AI safety, ethics, and governance, including through multilateral platforms such as GPAI and OECD-aligned initiatives.

The delegation, comprising startups, industry leaders, researchers, and policymakers, signals Israel’s commitment to building long-term, trust-based technology partnerships with India that extend well beyond individual projects.

Q. Israel is widely recognised as a global AI powerhouse. What are the core strengths of Israel’s AI ecosystem—from startups to research—that India can most effectively partner with?

A. Israel’s AI ecosystem is distinguished by several complementary strengths. These include deep-tech startups with advanced capabilities in AI algorithms, cybersecurity, computer vision, and emerging areas such as quantum technologies; world-class research institutions that consistently translate academic breakthroughs into real-world applications; and a strong tradition of defence-to-civilian technology transfer, particularly in areas such as AI resilience, safety, and complex systems engineering. Underpinning this is a robust culture of public–private collaboration that accelerates innovation and deployment.

India can most effectively partner with Israel through joint R&D initiatives, scalable pilot projects, and the localization of AI solutions. By combining Israel’s depth in innovation and applied research with India’s scale, talent pool, and deployment capacity, both countries can create AI solutions with global relevance and real-world impact.

Q. AI is transforming sectors such as healthcare, agriculture, cybersecurity, defence, and climate tech. Which areas do you see as the most promising for India–Israel AI collaboration in the near future?

A. The most promising areas for India–Israel AI collaboration lie where national priorities and proven innovation strengths intersect. These include agriculture and food security, with AI-enabled precision farming, climate-resilient crops, and advisory systems designed for smallholder farmers; healthcare, particularly in early diagnostics, AI-assisted imaging, and scalable digital health platforms; cybersecurity, through AI-driven threat detection to protect critical digital infrastructure; and climate and water technologies, using predictive analytics for water management, energy efficiency, and climate adaptation.

Together, these sectors offer the opportunity to deploy AI not only as a productivity tool, but as a means to strengthen resilience, sustainability, and inclusive growth, focusing on areas where India’s scale and Israel’s innovation track record are uniquely complementary.

Q. Israel has pioneered AI-driven solutions in agri-tech, water management, and public safety. How can platforms like India AI Summit 2026 help scale these innovations for India’s diverse and large-scale needs?

A. Platforms such as AI Summit 2026 are essential because scaling innovation in India requires localisation, affordability, and trust. The summit brings together policymakers, technologists, industry leaders, and end users, enabling critical pathways such as policy-to-pilot translation, integration with India’s digital public infrastructure, and partnerships with state governments, cooperatives, and local startups.

This ecosystem approach is what allows Israeli innovations to move beyond niche applications and evolve into population-scale, impact-driven technologies that can meet India’s diverse socio-economic and geographic needs.

Q. As AI adoption accelerates worldwide, how can India and Israel work together to ensure responsible, ethical, and inclusive AI development while still pushing the boundaries of innovation?

A. India and Israel can jointly lead by embedding ethics by design into the innovation lifecycle. This includes co-developing governance frameworks aligned with global best practices such as OECD principles; ensuring AI systems are inclusive, explainable, and culturally contextual; and investing in AI literacy and workforce skilling, particularly for informal and underserved sectors.

Innovation and responsibility are not opposites, but they are mutually reinforcing. By working together, India and Israel can demonstrate how democratic nations can advance the next phase of AI development with both ambition and accountability.

As Maya’s insights make clear, the AI revolution is measured not just by algorithms or patents, but by the systems we build, the communities we empower, and the trust we sustain.

About Maya Sherman

Maya is an AI policy researcher, ethicist, and innovation diplomat whose work sits at the intersection of governance, technology, and international cooperation. Currently serving as Innovation Attaché at the Embassy of Israel in India, she plays a key role in advancing India–Israel collaboration in artificial intelligence and emerging technologies.

Her global outlook has been shaped across geographies—from studying the social impact of the internet at Oxford, to engaging in cyber and AI policy in Tel Aviv, and working closely with India’s digital public infrastructure. These experiences inform her approach to AI governance, balancing ethics in theory, security in practice, and scale in real-world deployment.

Sherman also co-leads initiatives with the Global Partnership on Artificial Intelligence (GPAI–OECD) and contributes to advisory boards and innovation programs across South Asia, Africa, and the Middle East, championing human-centric, inclusive, and responsible AI.