India and France Deepen Tech Ties: PM Modi and President HE Macron Launch the Maiden Edition of Bharat Innovates in Nice
Prime Minister of India Narendra Modi and President of the French Republic HE Emmanuel Macron today jointly inaugurated the maiden edition of Bharat Innovates 2026 at the Palais des Expositions de Nice, France. Organized by the Government of India as an initiative of the Union Ministry of Education, this high-impact event serves as a premier platform for advancing innovation-led partnerships between India’s deep tech innovators and global stakeholders.
Union Minister for Commerce and Industry Shri Piyush Goyal, welcomed the dignitaries participating in this event. Union Minister for External Affairs Dr. S Jaishankar; National Security Advisor, Shri Ajit Doval and Principal Scientific Advisor to the Government of India, Dr. Ajay Kumar Sood attended the inaugural event, among others.
Addressing the gathering, Prime Minister Shri Narendra Modi underscored India’s growing leadership in innovation and technology, stating, “Bharat innovates with scale and speed. Bharat innovates for a sustainable future, and Bharat innovates for the whole world. Innovation is in India’s DNA. Bharat Innovates is an invitation to the world to co-create the next chapter of global innovation with India.”
President HE Emmanuel Macron lauded India’s vibrant innovation ecosystem and said that “I deeply believe that the fact that Nice is hosting today the first Bharat Innovates 2026 event ever held outside India is a powerful testament to the strength of the ties that unite our two countries. These ties are grounded in a long-standing technological, scientific and industrial partnership that has undergone a remarkable transformation in recent years. They also demonstrate how much our two countries still have to build together through their scientific, entrepreneurial, and industrial strengths.”
Following the inauguration, the leaders undertook a walkthrough of the Bharat Innovates Innovation Pavilion, showcasing 120 cutting-edge technologies and breakthrough innovations developed by Indian innovators and premier Indian higher education institutions across sectors including artificial intelligence, semiconductors, biotechnology, healthcare, energy, advanced manufacturing, mobility, and space technologies.
Bharat Innovates aims at showcasing and promoting Indian DeepTech innovations to facilitate partnerships with investors, industry, institutions and innovators from across the globe. It is expected to deepen bilateral cooperation in science, technology, innovation, education, and entrepreneurship while strengthening India’s integration into global innovation networks.
Scheduled over three days from 14–16 June 2026, Bharat Innovates 2026 features an extensive programme comprising 11 high-level panel discussions, multiple sector-focused masterclasses, curated B2B matchmaking meetings, focused investor pitch sessions involving over 50 startups, and dedicated networking engagements with global investors, corporates, universities, incubators, and policymakers. The programme brings together global industry leaders, investors, academics, and technology experts, to discuss emerging opportunities across artificial intelligence, semiconductors, biotechnology, healthcare, energy, advanced manufacturing, space, defence, and climate technologies
The inaugural edition of Bharat Innovates reflects the shared commitment of India and France to foster a future-ready innovation ecosystem driven by collaboration, talent, and transformative technologies.
For more information about the initiative and participating startups, visit: www.bharatinnovates.in.
