New Delhi: Galgotias University was asked to leave its stall at the India AI Impact Summit 2026 after a staff member presented a Chinese-made robotic dog as the university’s own creation. The incident took place at the flagship AI event held at Bharat Mandapam in New Delhi.
The controversy started when Professor Neha Singh from Galgotias University spoke to state-run broadcaster DD News. She said, “You need to meet Orion. This has been developed by the Centre of Excellence at Galgotias University.” She also claimed that the university was the first private institution to invest more than ₹350 crore in artificial intelligence. A video of her remarks went viral on social media.
Soon after, online users identified the robot as the Go2 model made by Chinese company Unitree Robotics. This robotic dog is commercially available and costs around ₹200,000 (about $2,800). It is widely used in research and education.
Following the online backlash and criticism, the government ordered the university to vacate its stall at the summit. This happened after the controversy over displaying a “Chinese” robodog.
Galgotias University issued an official statement on February 18 (Tuesday). It said, “There was no institutional intent to misrepresent this innovation. The university remains firmly committed to academic integrity, transparency, and responsible representation of our work. Understanding the organisers sentiment we have vacated the premises.”
The university also apologised in its statement. It said, “We apologise profusely for the confusion created at the recent AI Summit. One of our representatives was ill-informed. She was not aware of the technical origins of the product and in her enthusiasm of being on camera, gave factually incorrect information even though she was not authorised to speak to the press.”
Social media users accused the university of dishonesty despite the apology.
Later, the university issued another statement. It said it was “deeply pained” and described the incident as a “propaganda campaign” that could spread negativity and harm the morale of students working to innovate, learn, and build their skills using global technologies.
The university added, “We would like to clearly state that the robotic programming is part of our endeavour to make students learn AI programming and develop & deploy real world skills using globally available tools and resources, given developing AI talent is need of an hour.”
It further stated, “Our university’s vision is focused on student learning & innovation and we provide students with access to modern technologies so they can gain practical experience and prepare for the future.”
Professor Neha Singh later spoke to reporters. She said her remarks had been misunderstood. “It might be that I could not convey well what I wanted to say, or you could not understand well what I wanted to say,” she told them.
The embarrassment grew when IT Minister Ashwini Vaishnaw shared the video clip on his official social media account before the backlash started. He later deleted the post.
A Chinese media outlet called ‘China Pulse’ claimed that Union Minister Ashwini Vaishnaw said the Chinese robot presented at Galgotias University was an Indian robot.
However, the Press Information Bureau (PIB), the central government’s nodal agency for information on policies and programmes, called this claim false. PIB Fact Check posted on X that the minister nowhere made such remarks.
Congress leader Pawan Khera criticised the government over the controversy. He said the event was supposed to be a platform for innovation and exchange of ideas but “BJP reduced it to a cheap China Bazaar”. In a post on X, he slammed Union Minister Ashwini Vaishnaw, saying it has proved that in India AI means “Ashwini is Incompetent.” He also referred to the Prime Minister and said every event is a “Jhappi-Pappi Fest”.
Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology Secretary S Krishnan spoke to the media. He said, “misinformation cannot be encouraged.” He added, “We want genuine and actual work to be reflected in the way that people exhibit in expos such as AI Summit 2026. We don’t want the controversy surrounding the exhibits presented here. So I think it’s essential that a code is followed there. Misinformation cannot be encouraged. I’m not getting into whether they are right or wrong. We just don’t want the controversy.”
The India AI Impact Summit was inaugurated by Prime Minister Narendra Modi at Bharat Mandapam on Monday. The government pitches it as a flagship gathering to position India as a global AI hub. It is billed as the first major AI event hosted in the Global South.
The five-day summit runs until Saturday. It includes policy discussions, startup showcases, and closed-door meetings on AI governance, infrastructure, and innovation. Delegates from more than 100 countries are attending, including several heads of government and industry leaders such as Google’s Sundar Pichai, OpenAI’s Sam Altman, and Anthropic’s Dario Amodei. Prime Minister Modi, along with these leaders, addressed the gathering on Thursday.
On the opening day, there were complaints of overcrowding, long queues, and confusion at the venue. Organisers extended exhibition hours and tightened entry management to improve arrangements.
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