BRICS Summit Adopts New Delhi Declaration 2026 Calling for Global Cooperation on AI Governance and Data Protection

Leaders of the BRICS nations unanimously adopted the New Delhi Declaration 2026 at the 18th BRICS Summit held in New Delhi on September 12, establishing an expansive international framework for artificial intelligence (AI) governance and digital technology cooperation. The consensus declaration underscores the transformative potential of AI for global economic growth while stressing the urgency of addressing risks associated with autonomous systems, deepfakes, cybercrime, and data privacy. The 140-point document commits member countries to implement the BRICS Leaders' Statement on the Global Governance of Artificial Intelligence. Key provisions emphasize ensuring equitable access to advanced AI compute resources for developing nations in the Global South, improving the energy efficiency of massive AI data centers, and protecting intellectual property rights in training datasets. Furthermore, the declaration calls for robust safeguards against the misappropriation or cultural misrepresentation of local heritage within frontier AI models. Beyond AI governance, the framework details strategic cooperation in cybersecurity, digital public infrastructure (DPI), quantum computing, and telecommunications. Participating leaders highlighted the need for collective action against malicious software and weaponized digital tools, positioning the Global South as an active rule-shaper in the international technology ecosystem.