Macron calls India a 'country of innovation', hails partnership in AI, climate and nuclear energy

French President Emmanuel Macron on Sunday described India as a “nation of innovation” and said France and India share a strong and expanding partnership in critical sectors including artificial intelligence, climate change and civil nuclear energy.

Speaking at the inauguration of the ‘Bharat Innovates’ event in Nice alongside Prime Minister Narendra Modi, Macron said India’s progress in research and technology reflects its growing role as a global innovation leader.

“India is a country of innovation. India and France have a true partnership in critical sectors like AI and climate change,” Macron said, adding that the cooperation between the two countries continues to deepen across emerging technologies.

He noted that there was significant scope to expand bilateral engagement in the civil nuclear energy sector, including in small modular reactors, underscoring the strategic importance of long-term energy collaboration.

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Highlighting India’s scientific achievements, Macron pointed to the success of the Chandrayaan-3 lunar mission as an example of the country’s technological capability. “With the Chandrayaan-3 mission, the feat of landing on the Moon's south pole was accomplished in record time, thereby demonstrating India's strength and innovative capability,” he said through a translator.

"India's Chandrayaan-3 mission, which achieved the first-ever landing near the Moon's south pole in July 2023, demonstrated remarkable innovation, execution and industrial capability. The world increasingly sees India not only as a country with immense talent, but as a nation of innovation and a disruptive force in technology. France has been the most attractive country in Europe for investment for the past seven years. Through the recent Choose France initiative, we secured confirmation of 93 billion euros in investments," Macron said.

Macron also praised India’s demographic advantage and its investment in education and research. He said India, a nation of 1.4 billion people, produces more than one million engineers every year — a figure he said exceeds the combined output of Europe and the United States.

“India is advancing rapidly in research, innovation and frontier technologies, and is emerging as a global innovation leader,” he said, adding that the space sector best illustrates India’s potential.

Welcoming Prime Minister Modi to France, Macron described the visit as a reflection of India’s rising global standing and leadership continuity. “We are very proud to have you here,” he said, noting Modi’s long tenure in office and what he called the “steadfast resolve and strength” of India.

He also recalled the joint launch of the India–France Year of Innovation in Mumbai earlier this year, saying the focus was never on whether India was innovating, but on how both countries could innovate together.

Macron said French companies respect India’s “Make in India” initiative and have been active participants across multiple sectors, further strengthening economic and technological ties.

The Bharat Innovates 2026 initiative is a flagship platform aimed at accelerating India’s deep-tech startups and research ventures globally. It brings together startups and venture capital firms from India, France and other countries to foster collaboration and investment in emerging technologies.

Modi is currently in France for bilateral engagements with Macron and to attend the G7 Summit, following his arrival in Nice on Saturday as part of a broader multi-country visit that also includes Slovakia.