NEW DELHI, India: Bill Gates withdrew from India's AI Impact Summit hours before his scheduled keynote this week, compounding difficulties for an event already facing criticism over organizational lapses and traffic disruptions.

His absence, followed by a separate high-profile cancellation by Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang, added to the summit's challenging start, which was promoted as the first major artificial intelligence forum in the Global South. India has sought to use the gathering to position itself as a leading voice in global AI governance.

The Gates Foundation said the billionaire would not deliver his address "to ensure the focus remains on the AI Summit's key priorities." Just days earlier, the foundation had dismissed speculation about his attendance and said he was on track to participate.

Gates' withdrawal came after the U.S. Department of Justice released emails last month that included communications between the late financier and convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein and staff at the Gates Foundation. Gates has said the relationship was limited to philanthropy-related discussions and that meeting Epstein was a mistake.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi addressed the summit on February 19 alongside French President Emmanuel Macron, Google CEO Sundar Pichai, OpenAI CEO Sam Altman, and Anthropic CEO Dario Amodei. In his remarks, Modi emphasized online safety.

"We must be even more vigilant about children's safety. Just as a school syllabus is curated, the AI space should also be child- and family-guided," Modi said.

A stage photo opportunity created an awkward moment when Altman and Amodei, who lead rival AI firms, stood side by side without holding hands, unlike other executives.

Despite the controversy, the summit generated major investment pledges. Reliance Industries committed nearly US$110 billion over seven years for AI-related infrastructure. Including Reliance, more than $200 billion in AI data centre investments have been pledged in India, including from the Adani Group, Microsoft, and Yotta.

Analysts, however, have cautioned that the rapid expansion of AI infrastructure could strain India's power grid and water supply.

Attendees also voiced frustration over event management. Exhibition halls were unexpectedly closed to the public on Thursday, angering companies that had set up booths. The venue appeared largely deserted after several days of heavy crowds.

Traffic restrictions to accommodate VIP movements caused significant disruptions in the city of 20 million. The government apologized for the inconvenience during the summit's early days. Social media footage showed participants walking long distances due to road closures and a lack of transport.

Opposition figures criticised the handling of the event. "How can you expect your engineers, AI guys, to walk such distances ... And then we complain that entrepreneurs are leaving India," said Pawan Khera of the Congress party.

"The whole summit is, sorry, meant for researchers, founders, builders who are grinding in the field every day. Instead, we get treated like we don't matter, blocked for hours so some minister or official can pass through," Microsoft researcher Jay Gala wrote on X.