Chapter 14 — Science, technology and digital public infrastructure

Coverage window: 1 January–10 October 2026

Revision checked: 11 October 2026

Question set: CA26-TECH-001 to CA26-TECH-030

Technology current affairs is not a list of product names. For exam preparation, identify the institution, event, programme, status, operating unit and date. This chapter covers two verified 2026 anchors: the India AI Impact Summit and the tenth anniversary of the Unified Payments Interface (UPI). The first concerns international AI cooperation and governance; the second is a public digital payment system. They share a technology theme but are not the same initiative.

1. India AI Impact Summit 2026

The India AI Impact Summit was held in New Delhi in February. Government releases describe the broader programme as running from 16 to 20 February; the New Delhi Declaration on AI Impact records the summit discussions on 18–19 February. These dates refer to different parts of the programme. When a question says “broader programme,” use the longer event window; when it asks for the declaration’s summit dates, use 18–19 February. The venue was Bharat Mandapam, New Delhi. The Government of India described it as the first global AI summit hosted in the Global South.

The Summit was organised around three Sutras: People, Planet and Progress. “People” emphasises human-centred and inclusive benefit; “Planet” concerns environmental sustainability and responsible resource use; “Progress” concerns inclusive economic and technological development. The Sutras are guiding principles. They are not the seven working groups.

The agenda also used seven thematic working groups, described as Chakras. The declaration’s subjects include human-capital development; wider access for social empowerment; trustworthy AI systems; energy efficiency; AI use in science; wider access to AI resources; and AI for economic growth and social good. Recall the distinction: three Sutras give the high-level principles; seven Chakras organise themed work and collaboration.

The Government of India reported that 92 countries and international organisations endorsed the New Delhi Declaration on AI Impact. A separate government outcome release reported 13 model providers signing the New Delhi Frontier AI Impact Commitments. It also described 12 deliverables across seven working groups. Endorsement, signature, attendance and implementation are different: an endorsement of a declaration does not mean each country has enacted a domestic law; a voluntary commitment does not automatically create a binding treaty.

Three flagship challenges were called AI for ALL, AI by HER and YUVAi. They focus on different participation routes and innovation communities. The summit also announced the IndiaAI Global Impact Commons and other collaborative mechanisms. For fact recall, retain the name of a challenge and the institution’s stated purpose, but do not infer that every showcased prototype has become a deployed public service.

2. UPI at ten years: date, operator and reported scale

UPI was launched on 25 August 2016 by the National Payments Corporation of India (NPCI), under the regulatory oversight of the Reserve Bank of India (RBI). A Ministry of Finance release dated 24 August 2026 marked its tenth anniversary. In the release’s financial-year comparison, annual transaction volume rose from 1.78 crore transactions in FY 2016–17 to more than 24,162 crore in FY 2025–26; transaction value rose from ₹0.07 lakh crore to about ₹314 lakh crore. These are the government release’s reported figures and must be labelled by financial year.

The same release said 703 banks were live on UPI in FY 2025–26, compared with 44 in FY 2016–17. It listed UPI as operational in 11 countries: the United Arab Emirates, France, Bhutan, Sri Lanka, Nepal, Singapore, Mauritius, Qatar, Cambodia, Greece and the Maldives. “Operational in a country” does not mean every merchant or bank in that country supports every UPI service. Check the particular cross-border linkage and service terms before making a broader claim.

UPI functions as an interoperable instant payment interface connecting participating bank accounts and payment applications. NPCI operates the platform; the RBI provides regulatory oversight. An interface is not a bank account, a currency or a government benefit by itself. In a typical transaction, the user authorises a payment through a participating application, the system routes the instruction, and participating institutions process settlement under applicable rules. Do not confuse a payment rail with the underlying deposit held by a bank.

3. A safe method for reading technology announcements

For a technology announcement, ask four questions: Is this a policy principle, a research prototype, a voluntary commitment, a platform service, or an operational deployment? Who issued the source? Which date or financial year does the data describe? What limitation does the source state? This method prevents a demonstration from being reported as a national rollout and prevents a forecast or commitment from being reported as an achieved result.

For AI, distinguish model capability from governance, compute access, data, energy needs, skills and public service deployment. For digital payments, separate the system operator, regulator, participating banks, payment applications, transaction volume and value. Always keep the unit next to a number: crore transactions and lakh-crore rupees measure different things.

Event card

Quick recall

• Which dates describe the broader AI Impact Summit programme, and which dates appear on the New Delhi Declaration?
• How do the three Sutras differ from the seven Chakras?
• What does the count of 92 endorsements describe, and what does it not prove?
• Who operates UPI, and which institution provides its regulatory oversight?
• How many banks were live on UPI in FY 2025–26 according to the dated release?
• Why should transaction count and transaction value never be interchanged?
• Which 11 countries were listed for UPI operation in the August 2026 release?

Complete the 30 original questions. Label each statistic with its source date, period, unit and status.

Figure 14.1 — AI, UPI and digital public infrastructure. Original teaching visual; schematic, not to scale unless the chapter specifies units.

Original practice questions

1. Where was the India AI Impact Summit 2026 held?

A. New Delhi

B. Hyderabad

C. Bengaluru

D. Mumbai

Answer: A. Official releases identify New Delhi as the host city. Source CA26-059.

2. What venue hosted the Summit?

A. Vigyan Bhawan, Kolkata

B. Bharat Mandapam

C. Pragati Maidan, Mumbai

D. Nagoya City Mizuho Park

Answer: B. Government sources name Bharat Mandapam in New Delhi. Source CA26-059.

3. Which dates describe the broader Summit programme?

A. 18–19 March 2026

B. 12–13 September 2026

C. 16–20 February 2026

D. 25–30 August 2026

Answer: C. The broader programme ran 16–20 February; the declaration separately refers to 18–19 February. Source CA26-059 and CA26-060.

4. Which dates appear in the New Delhi Declaration on AI Impact?

A. 16–20 February 2026

B. 12–13 September 2026

C. 24–25 August 2026

D. 18–19 February 2026

Answer: D. The declaration identifies its Summit dates as 18–19 February. Source CA26-060.

5. India described the event as the first global AI summit hosted in the:

A. Global South

B. Arctic Circle

C. European Union

D. Pacific Islands only

Answer: A. The government release characterises it as the first global AI summit hosted in the Global South. Source CA26-059.

6. Which set gives the three AI Impact Summit Sutras?

A. Peace, Power and Production

B. People, Planet and Progress

C. Policy, Profit and Patents

D. Population, Ports and Payments

Answer: B. People, Planet and Progress are the guiding Sutras. Source CA26-060.

7. What do the seven Chakras represent?

A. Seven countries endorsing the declaration

B. Seven UPI applications

C. Seven thematic working groups

D. Seven companies signing a treaty

Answer: C. The Chakras are the Summit’s thematic working groups. Source CA26-060.

8. Which issue appears among the AI working-group themes?

A. Establishment of a single world currency

B. Replacement of national courts

C. Compulsory adoption of one AI model

D. Trustworthiness of AI systems

Answer: D. Trustworthy AI systems are among the themes stated in the declaration. Source CA26-060.

9. How many countries and international organisations were reported as endorsing the declaration?

A. 92

B. 13

C. 7

D. 703

Answer: A. MeitY reported 92 endorsements. Source CA26-060.

10. How many model providers signed the New Delhi Frontier AI Impact Commitments?

A. 92

B. 13

C. 24,162

D. 703

Answer: B. The government outcome release reports 13 model providers signing the commitments. Source CA26-060.

11. What does endorsement of the AI declaration establish?

A. Replacement of every national AI law

B. A UPI payment rule

C. Endorsement of a declaration; it does not automatically enact domestic law in each country

D. A world-government appointment

Answer: C. International declaration endorsement and domestic legislation are different legal steps. Source CA26-060.

12. Which three names identify the flagship AI challenges?

A. UPI, NEFT and RTGS

B. People, Planet and Progress

C. ISRO, DRDO and NPCI

D. AI for ALL, AI by HER and YUVAi

Answer: D. The government names AI for ALL, AI by HER and YUVAi as challenges. Source CA26-059.

13. Which challenge focused on women-led AI innovation?

A. AI by HER

B. YUVAi

C. UPI Global

D. GSLV-F17

Answer: A. AI by HER was the women-focused challenge. Source CA26-059.

14. Which challenge was identified as the Global Youth Challenge?

A. AI by HER

B. YUVAi

C. AI for ALL

D. Global AI Impact Commons

Answer: B. Government materials identify YUVAi as the Global Youth Challenge. Source CA26-059.

15. A voluntary AI commitment announced at a summit should be treated as:

A. A completed public service in every district

B. An audited financial account

C. A stated commitment, not automatically a treaty or completed deployment

D. A satellite launch vehicle

Answer: C. The legal force and implementation status must be checked separately. Source CA26-060.

16. On what date was UPI launched?

A. 25 August 2026

B. 1 April 2016

C. 24 August 2025

D. 25 August 2016

Answer: D. The Ministry of Finance identifies 25 August 2016 as the launch date. Source CA26-061.

17. Which organisation operates the UPI platform?

A. National Payments Corporation of India (NPCI)

B. United Nations Development Programme

C. Olympic Council of Asia

D. Andhra Pradesh Finance Department

Answer: A. UPI was launched by NPCI. Source CA26-061.

18. Which institution provides the regulatory oversight named in the release?

A. Ministry of Education

B. Reserve Bank of India

C. APCRDA

D. International Monetary Fund

Answer: B. The Ministry describes UPI as operating under RBI regulatory oversight. Source CA26-061.

19. What anniversary did the August 2026 release mark?

A. Five years

B. Twenty years

C. Ten years

D. One year

Answer: C. UPI launched in August 2016, so 2026 marked ten years. Source CA26-061.

20. How many banks did the release report as live on UPI in FY 2025–26?

A. 44

B. 92

C. 13

D. 703

Answer: D. The dated release says 703 banks were live in FY 2025–26. Source CA26-061.

21. What annual transaction volume did the release report for UPI in FY 2025–26?

A. More than 24,162 crore transactions

B. 314 crore transactions

C. 703 lakh transactions

D. 1.78 lakh-crore transactions

Answer: A. The release reports more than 24,162 crore transactions for FY 2025–26. Source CA26-061.

22. What transaction value did the same release report for FY 2025–26?

A. ₹24,162 crore

B. Around ₹314 lakh crore

C. ₹0.07 crore

D. ₹703 lakh crore

Answer: B. The release gives transaction value of about ₹314 lakh crore. Source CA26-061.

23. What was the reported UPI transaction volume in FY 2016–17?

A. 24,162 crore transactions

B. 314 lakh crore transactions

C. 1.78 crore transactions

D. 703 crore transactions

Answer: C. The Ministry’s comparison gives 1.78 crore transactions for FY 2016–17. Source CA26-061.

24. In how many countries did the August 2026 release say UPI was operational?

A. 18

B. 25

C. 92

D. 11

Answer: D. The release lists 11 countries. It is a dated service-scope statement. Source CA26-061.

25. Which country appears in the listed UPI locations?

A. France

B. Canada

C. Japan

D. Mexico

Answer: A. France is among the 11 countries listed by the Ministry. Source CA26-061.

26. Which pair was included among the listed UPI countries?

A. Canada and Mexico

B. Bhutan and Nepal

C. Japan and South Korea

D. Germany and Spain

Answer: B. Bhutan and Nepal both appear in the August 2026 list. Source CA26-061.

27. What does “crore transactions” measure?

A. Rupee value

B. Number of member countries

C. Transaction count

D. Number of AI providers

Answer: C. It measures payment volume; rupee value is separately expressed in lakh crore. Source CA26-061.

28. Which statement best describes UPI in relation to bank deposits?

A. It is a new sovereign currency

B. It is a welfare grant

C. It is a bank regulator

D. It is a payment interface; deposits remain with participating banks

Answer: D. UPI is a payment interface, not itself a bank account or currency. Source CA26-061.

29. Which pair correctly states the reported UPI transaction value across the two financial years?

A. ₹0.07 lakh crore in FY 2016–17 to about ₹314 lakh crore in FY 2025–26

B. ₹314 crore in FY 2016–17 to ₹0.07 lakh crore in FY 2025–26

C. 44 lakh crore to 703 crore transactions

D. ₹20,000 per family to ₹6,000 per family

Answer: A. Those are the values and periods in the government comparison. Source CA26-061.

30. Why must the 24,162-crore UPI volume be labelled with FY 2025–26?

A. It is a timeless fixed number

B. It is an annual measure tied to a specific period and source

C. It counts every transaction since launch

D. It measures AI Summit endorsements

Answer: B. The figure is an annual financial-year volume, not a cumulative total. Source CA26-061.