Drawing from her work with technology companies and policymakers across Europe and Asia, Junkermann said regulation alone cannot determine the direction of artificial intelligence development. According to her, governance frameworks may help reduce harm after deployment, but they do not influence the core motivations behind what systems are created and why they are designed in a particular way.
“Regulation can limit harm after the fact,” she said. “But it doesn’t determine what gets built, or why. That’s a question of incentives, design choices and ultimately moral judgement.”
Junkermann identified India as one of the world’s most significant testing grounds for this next phase of artificial intelligence development. She said the country’s combination of engineering talent, expanding digital infrastructure, entrepreneurial momentum and ambitious public sector initiatives has positioned India as an emerging force in shaping the future of AI deployment.
India is not only adopting artificial intelligence technologies but is also actively influencing how these systems are built and applied. Initiatives such as the IndiaAI Mission are accelerating investments in sovereign AI capabilities, including computing infrastructure, research and startup ecosystems, while maintaining a strong focus on responsible and inclusive implementation.
At the same time, a new generation of Indian artificial intelligence companies is emerging with a focus on local applicability rather than replicating Western technology models. Companies such as Sarvam AI and Krutrim are developing AI systems designed specifically for India’s linguistic, cultural and economic environment. Their emphasis, according to Junkermann, is not solely on achieving frontier-scale capabilities but on creating practical solutions for real-world use.
She argued that this combination gives India a distinct strategic advantage in the evolving global AI race. While the international artificial intelligence ecosystem remains heavily dominated by the United States and China, India retains the flexibility to establish an independent development model that integrates innovation with social priorities from the beginning.
“India doesn’t have to retrofit ethics into AI later,” Junkermann said. “It can build them in from the start. That’s a structural advantage.”
Her remarks come at a time when the limitations of existing governance frameworks are becoming increasingly evident. Regulatory models such as the European Union’s AI Act focus largely on classification systems, compliance mechanisms and enforcement measures. While these tools remain necessary, Junkermann argued that they are fundamentally reactive and struggle to answer deeper questions about what kinds of AI systems should be developed and which societal outcomes they should prioritise.
She noted that decisions involving efficiency, fairness and human agency are often determined during the design and development stage by engineers, product teams and private companies rather than by regulators after deployment.
According to Junkermann, this is where India’s opportunity becomes most significant. By embedding ethical principles into technical education, research programmes and product development processes, India can shape artificial intelligence at the architectural level rather than merely through policy intervention. This includes aligning incentives for developers, defining expectations for corporate behaviour and integrating ethical reasoning into technical training systems.
The implications of such an approach, she said, extend far beyond India. As artificial intelligence systems become globally interconnected, the values and principles embedded within them will increasingly influence international markets and societies. Countries that establish these norms early are likely to wield significant influence over the future direction of AI technologies.
“AI is becoming a foundational layer of the global economy,” Junkermann said. “The question is not just who builds it, but what values it reflects.”
The international competition surrounding artificial intelligence has traditionally focused on capability, computational scale and technological dominance. However, Junkermann argued that a new contest is emerging, one centred on trust, social alignment and practical usability. While the United States continues to lead in frontier AI models and China advances rapidly in large-scale deployment, she believes India has the opportunity to lead in the practical integration and governance of artificial intelligence in real-world environments.
For policymakers, investors and technology leaders, the message is increasingly clear: the next stage of global AI competition will not be determined solely by computational power, capital investment or technical capability. Trust, she argued, will become the defining factor.
“And trust, in the age of intelligent systems, is ultimately a moral construct,” Junkermann added.
Born in 1980, Nicole Junkermann is an international investor and entrepreneur focused on technology, artificial intelligence and life sciences. She is the founder of NJF Holdings and leads its venture arm NJF Capital along with Gameday by NJF Holdings.
Through NJF Capital, Junkermann has built a portfolio of more than 40 companies, concentrating on early-stage investments in artificial intelligence, deep technology and life sciences. Her notable investments include SpaceX, Rippling, Revolut and Groq, where she was reportedly an early and major investor prior to the company’s recent acquisition by Nvidia.
The discussion around artificial intelligence is rapidly moving beyond regulatory frameworks toward broader questions of ethics, accountability and societal impact. In that transition, India is increasingly being viewed as a potential global leader capable of shaping how artificial intelligence evolves in ways that balance innovation with public trust and social responsibility.
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