Adani Outlines India's Demand-Driven Growth Vision at CII Summit

Gautam Adani, chairman of the Adani Group, said on Monday that India's development path is distinct from those of the US or China, as the country is building infrastructure and capacity to meet tangible, growing domestic demand. Speaking at the CII Annual Business Summit 2026, Adani emphasized that India's growth is driven by rising households, expanding cities, industrial revival, electric mobility, and the scaling of millions of small businesses.

Adani noted that India has crossed 500 gigawatts of installed power capacity as of March 2026, with 53% added in the past decade. He projected that capacity will grow fourfold to 2,000 gigawatts by 2047, describing the effort as 'nation-scale execution' combining industrialization, digitization, and decarbonization. On economic growth, he highlighted that India took 67 years to reach a $2 trillion economy but only 12 more years to double it, calling current growth 'compounding acceleration' rather than incremental expansion.

Adani stressed that India's digital transformation, exemplified by UPI, has already expanded economic access and trust among ordinary citizens. He predicted AI will have a similar but more powerful impact, potentially increasing data centre power demand from five gigawatts in 2030 to 75 gigawatts by 2047. Rejecting the narrative that AI will eliminate jobs, he urged India to adopt AI as a tool to boost productivity, create jobs, and empower small enterprises.

Adani called for proactive preparation to meet the infrastructure demands of AI and digital growth, warning against importing Western assumptions about technology and labor. He said AI will create new markets, enterprises, and business models that are currently invisible. The CII summit will continue through Tuesday, with further sessions on industrial policy and economic innovation.