- NDTV Defence Summit 2026 will be held on September 27 as a premier defence forum
- Focus on India's preparation for new warfare forms including AI, drones, and space tech
- Key speakers include Defence Minister Rajnath Singh and chiefs of Army, Navy, and Air Force
The NDTV Defence Summit 2026 – India's New Defence Edge is being held on Sept. 27, marking a new edition of the premier defence forum. The one-day conclave will feature senior military officers, defence officials, experts and industry leaders.
This year, the summit will focus on how India is preparing for changing forms of warfare. Key topics include the lessons from Operation Sindoor, the use of AI, drones, space technology and autonomous systems, stronger coordination between the armed forces, and Atmanirbharta in defence manufacturing. The discussions will also cover India's growing defence and technology partnerships with other countries.
The Army, Navy and Air Force chiefs, the Chief of Defence Staff and other senior defence officials are among those scheduled to speak at the summit.
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#NDTVDefenceSummit2026 | India's New Defence Edge returns with a powerful new edition, bringing together the nation's top military leaders, strategic thinkers, policymakers, and defence innovators.
— NDTV (@ndtv) September 27, 2026
From battlefield technologies and emerging threats to India's journey towards… pic.twitter.com/MG3G1VrH3c
Full Agenda: Schedule, Timings And Key Speakers
The day-long programme will open at 10:30 am, beginning with a welcome address by NDTV Managing Editor Shiv Aroor. Defence Minister Rajnath Singh will deliver the keynote address between 10:35 am and 11:15 am.
Army Chief General Dhiraj Seth will take the stage next with his address, “Atmanirbharta in an Era of Transformative Wars”, from 11:15 am to 11:45 am.
The first panel discussion, “The Threat Matrix: Rewriting India's Rules of Deterrence”, will follow from 11:45 am to 12:15 pm. The panel brings together Dr Samir V Kamat, former DRDO Chairman and former Defence R&D Secretary; Ashish Kansal, Director and CEO of SMPP Limited; Rakesh Ojha, Director at Munitions India Limited; and Col Jayaram M (Retd.), CEO of Kalyani Rafael Advanced Systems.
The focus will shift to AI from 12:15 pm to 12:40 pm with the session “AI Takes the Field. Is Mankind Still in Command?” Sameer Joshi, CEO of Newspace; Lt Gen Raj Shukla (Retd.), former Army Commander; and Suresh Kamate, GM, Aerospace & Defence Business at dSPACE India, will join the discussion.
Air Marshal Tejpal Singh, AVSM, VM, Deputy Chief of the Air Staff, will take the stage from 12:40 pm to 1:10 pm for a special address on “Fifth Generation and Beyond.”
The 1:15 pm to 1:45 pm session, “Building Bharat's Arsenal of Innovation: AI, Drones & Beyond,” will focus on India's growing defence technology ecosystem. Speakers include Bodhisattwa Sanghapriya, Founder & CEO, IG Defence; Brigadier Devasheesh Chowdhury (Veteran), Senior GM, Zen Technologies; Veddika Dalmia, Director, Hyper Stealth Technologies; Rear Admiral R Sreenivas, VSM (Retd.), CEO, Bondada Group; and Arvind Lakshmikumar, MD & CEO, TONBO Imaging.
Lunch is scheduled from 1:45 pm to 2:20 pm.
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The afternoon schedule begins at 2:20 pm with a fireside chat featuring former Deputy NSA and current NSAB member Pankaj Saran, who will discuss “Faultlines & Firepower: India's Strategic Calculus.”
The agenda moves into defence technology and space with a series of short sessions. Tapan Rishi Bhatnagar, COO, SAAB FFVO India, will speak from 2:40 pm to 3 pm on “Beyond Assembly to Autonomy: Securing India's Core Defence Technologies.”
At 3 pm, Rafal Modrzewski, Co-Founder and CEO of ICEYE, will take part in a fireside chat on “Space and Sovereignty” until 3:10 pm. This will be followed by Lieutenant General Dominique Tardif, Vice Chief of the French Air and Space Force, who will discuss “The Evolution of Airpower and the Indo-French Partnership” from 3:10 pm to 3:30 pm.
Puneet Kaura, MD & CEO of Samtel Avionics, will then speak on “The Next Big Leap: Space, Avionics and the Future of Indian Defence” from 3:30 pm to 3:45 pm. The segment will end with Pawan Chandana, Founder of Skyroot Aerospace, who will present “Ignition: India's Race to Own Space” from 3:45 pm to 4 pm, followed by a Q&A.
Naval Chief Admiral Krishna Swaminathan will discuss “Commanding the Maritime Future” from 4 pm to 4.30 PM, followed by D-Propulse CEO Saurav Jha on rocket propulsion from 4.30 PM to 5 PM.
At 5 pm, Russian Ambassador to India Denis Alipov will discuss "The Next Chapter of India–Russia Defence Ties ". Defence Secretary Rajesh Kumar Singh will also take part in a session, "Strategy to Capability: Building India's Defence Edge".
The summit will end with Chief of Defence Staff General NS Raja Subramani joining the final discussion, “Commanding Tomorrow's Battlefield – The India Vision”, from 6 pm to 6:30 pm, followed by the closing remarks and vote of thanks.
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