Mistral CEO Warns of AI Power Concentration at India Summit

At the India AI Impact Summit 2026 in New Delhi, Arthur Mensch, CEO of Mistral AI, warned that allowing a few companies to dominate the artificial intelligence sector could lead to abuse of control, according to Bloomberg. He said the world risks concentrating AI power in the hands of three or four large firms, which could undermine transparency and limit access to technology.

Mensch contrasted Mistral’s open-weight models with the closed systems developed by OpenAI, Google, and Anthropic, noting that open models allow governments and enterprises to customize and control their AI implementations. He emphasized that AI should remain accessible and adaptable rather than dependent on a small number of private corporations.

Speaking before an audience that included Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi and executives from leading global AI companies, Mensch called for greater decentralization in AI infrastructure. He urged countries to invest in locally controlled AI systems and talent to preserve autonomy as AI becomes increasingly central to economic operations.

Mistral, based in Paris and valued at nearly €12 billion, positions itself as Europe’s primary competitor to U.S. firms in the AI field. Mensch reiterated that open collaboration and transparency will be essential to prevent excessive leverage in the rapidly evolving AI market.