Soket AI: India's Frontier AGI Model for Multilingual Code and Science

Note: Coverage from the AI Summit 2026.

A revolution is underway in New Delhi at the AI Summit 2026, an event that is more than just a showcase of technology—it is a testament to India's evolving role on the global stage. Among the emerging leaders is Soket AI (often referred to as Socket AI), a startup dedicated to bringing Artificial General Intelligence (AGI) to the common man.

In a special segment for DD News, anchor Gaurav Srivastava sat down with Abhishek Upperwal, the founder of Soket AI, to discuss the company's vision, government support, and the future of AI in India.

From Consumer to Creator: A New Paradigm

For decades, India has been a powerhouse of IT services and a massive consumer of technology. However, the narrative is shifting towards a builder mindset.

"The Impact Summit is not just an India event; it is a worldwide event," Abhishek Upperwal explained. "We are presenting that India is no longer just a consumer of AI. We are moving from that consumer mindset to a builder mindset."

This transition is critical. By building foundational AI capabilities within the country, India aims to export these technologies globally, rather than just consuming products made elsewhere.

The Genesis of Soket AI

The journey of Soket AI began about two years ago, spurred by a challenge. When OpenAI's Sam Altman visited India, he skeptically remarked on India's ability to build foundational models. This challenge ignited a spark in Abhishek and his colleagues from the Indian Institute of Science (IISc).

"We thought that we must try this," Abhishek recounted. Their efforts led to the creation of Pragna, a 1.25 billion parameter small language model built from scratch, trained on four Indian languages.

Government Support and the IndiaAI Mission

The turning point came with the IndiaAI Mission, which opened proposals for building foundational models.

"India is in dire need of a foundation model. We cannot depend on anyone else," Abhishek emphasized. With full support from the government, Soket AI aims to compete with global giants like Anthropic within the next year, creating products not just for India but for the world.

Bridging the Gap: Innovation for the Global South

Soket AI's roadmap is ambitious, targeting Artificial General Intelligence (AGI) to solve complex problems in science, healthcare, and agriculture.

"We can use AI for drug discovery... there are many farming techniques which we may not know yet," Abhishek noted. This mirrors the growing trend of using AI for creative and practical applications, such as generating viral 3D imagery or designing AI-generated product photos.

A key focus is the Global South. Soket AI is actively collecting data across 22 Indian languages and 20 Global South languages, alongside over 20 programming languages. This inclusive approach ensures that underrepresented languages and communities are part of the AI revolution.

Empowering Developers with Multilingual Code Models

One of Soket AI's upcoming launches at the Impact Summit is a Math and Code model.

"India still doesn't have its own agentic model that can do something with math and code," Abhishek pointed out. The new model will allow developers to give coding instructions in their native languages—whether it's Hindi, Gujarati, Punjabi, or Marathi. This development is as significant for the local developer ecosystem as the recent launch of Kiro IDE, which brought advanced checkpointing and team management to developers.

Responsible AI and Ethics

In an interaction with Prime Minister Narendra Modi, the importance of ethical AI was highlighted. The PM stressed the need for:

• Unbiased AI System: Ensuring fairness in automated decisions.
• Verified Information: Reducing hallucinations and citing sources.
• Responsible Usage: Mitigating risks associated with powerful models.

"We have to make sure that any AI that goes from India is cited... and people should not think that it is just AI generated," Abhishek said, echoing the PM's sentiments. For professionals like architects using ChatGPT for design, these ethical considerations are already becoming part of daily workflows.

Conclusion: India's Bright Future

As the AI landscape becomes a bipolar world dominated by the US and China, India is carving out its own space in the center. With initiatives like Soket AI and the backing of the IndiaAI Mission, India is poised to become a leader in the Global South, exporting not just talent but frontier technology.

The AI Summit 2026 marks the beginning of this new chapter. As Abhishek Upperwal and his team at Soket AI demonstrate, the future of AI is not just about algorithms—it's about empowering people.