NICE, FRANCE / MENA Newsire / – India and France adopted the India-France Innovation Roadmap 2030 during talks between Prime Minister Narendra Modi and President Emmanuel Macron in Nice on June 14, widening cooperation across artificial intelligence, trade, defence, space, education and health research. The two leaders met at Villa Kerylos in their first talks since the relationship was elevated in February to a Special Global Strategic Partnership.
The two governments announced 13 outcomes from Modi’s visit to France. They included a Joint India-France AI Working Group focused on AI governance, a new economic security dialogue and a high-level mechanism to pursue the goal of doubling bilateral trade within five years. The outcomes also covered railways, classified information sharing, digital science, startups and human space exploration.
Modi and Macron also reviewed the Horizon 2047 Roadmap, a long-term framework for bilateral ties. Their talks covered defence collaboration, civil nuclear energy, technology, innovation, talent mobility and cultural exchanges. Both sides agreed to intensify defence work through co-design, co-development and co-production of platforms and advanced technologies. They also discussed space situational awareness, human spaceflight and private sector space cooperation.
Technology ties expand
The Innovation Roadmap 2030 places trusted AI at the centre of the technology partnership. It covers safe and secure AI systems, child safety online and privacy-preserving data sharing for research, healthcare and public services. The roadmap also refers to India’s Data Empowerment and Protection Architecture and France’s work on trusted data spaces and health data platforms.
The outcomes include expanded possibilities for India’s Unified Payments Interface in France and the incubation of 10 more Indian startups at Station F. India’s Department of Science and Technology and France’s INRIA will establish a Centre of Digital Sciences. The Indian Council of Medical Research and France’s Health Data Hub signed a letter of intent for health data cooperation.
Trade and skills agenda
The two sides agreed to create a National Centre of Excellence for Skilling in Aeronautics and Allied Sectors at NSTI Kanpur. The roadmap also supports academic mobility, STEM education and wider recognition of qualifications. France has set an objective of welcoming 30,000 Indian students by 2030. Modi invited French universities to open campuses in India under the New Education Policy.
The leaders jointly inaugurated Bharat Innovates 2026 in Nice as part of the India-France Year of Innovation. The initiative brought together Indian innovators, higher education institutions, investors, companies and industry leaders across sectors such as advanced computing, semiconductors, space technology, biotechnology, energy, healthcare and manufacturing. The two sides also agreed to deepen museum and cultural cooperation, including work linked to the National Maritime Heritage Complex in Lothal.