Union Budget 2026: Eleven mentions of AI in Nirmala Sitharaman’s address are the highest ever for an FM’s speech

It was Arun Jaitely who first mentioned the term Artificial intelligence (AI) in a Finance Minister speech in the 2018-19 Budget. It was mentioned three times in that speech, twice in the context of digital space technologies and NITI Aayog’s national program, and once regarding the Department of Science & Technology’s mission on Cyber Physical Systems. In the Union Budget 2026 speech, Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman mentioned “Artificial Intelligence” (AI) a record-breaking eleven times, marking the highest frequency the term has appeared in any Indian budget speech to date.

The mentions of AI in the Union Budget 2026 speech was focused on the following specific applications:

Governance: Serving as a force multiplier for improved public service delivery.

Supporting new technologies: Adopting new technologies in various sectors through the AI Mission and National Quantum Mission.

Labour market analysis: Assessing the impact of emerging tech such as AI on job roles and skill requirements.

Bharat-VISTAAR: A new multilingual AI tool designed for broader linguistic accessibility.

Agriculture: Integration with AgriStack portals and ICAR agricultural practice packages.

Healthcare & accessibility: R&D and integration into assistive devices for People with Disabilities manufactured by Artificial Limbs Manufacturing Corporation of India (ALIMCO).

Customs & security: Expanding non-intrusive scanning and advanced imaging for risk assessment.

Education: Embedding AI modules directly into the national education curriculum from school level onwards and for teacher training.

Professional development: Upskilling and reskilling programs for engineers and tech professionals.

Employment matching: AI-enabled platforms to connect workers with jobs and training opportunities.

Past Budgets

It was Arun Jaitley who first mentioned “Artificial Intelligence” (AI) in the 2018-19 Budget speech. The term appeared three times: twice regarding digital space technologies and NITI Aayog’s national program, and once concerning the Department of Science & Technology’s mission on Cyber-Physical Systems.

In the 2019-20 Interim Budget, Piyush Goyal mentioned it four times, specifically detailing a National Programme, a National Centre, and a National Artificial Intelligence portal.

In the 2019-20 Budget, Nirmala Sitharaman mentioned it once while discussing the importance of new-age skills for the youth.

In 2020-21, she mentioned it four times. These references included the “new economy,” the integration of machine learning and AI in the Ayushman Bharat scheme, and the proposed National Policy on Official Statistics.

In 2021-22, the term appeared twice: once regarding the launch of MCA21 Version 3.0 driven by AI, and once regarding the use of the technology to identify tax evaders.

In 2022-23, she mentioned it once as a “sunrise opportunity” capable of assisting sustainable development.

In 2023-24, Nirmala Sitharaman mentioned it four times in relation to setting up Centres of Excellence. The speech featured the vision “Make AI in India and Make AI work for India” and focused on galvanizing an effective AI ecosystem.

In 2025-26, she mentioned the term twice.

Source: Budget Documents 2026-27