Indian CEOs lead global giants, says Macron at Innovation Forum – Firstpost

As French President Emmanuel Macron arrived in India, he underscored the country’s rising global clout in innovation, pointing to the growing number of Indian-origin CEOs steering major multinational corporations, from Chanel to Alphabet, during his address at the India-France Innovation Forum in Mumbai.

What particularly caught Macron’s attention was his reference to the CEO of French luxury house Chanel tracing roots to Kolhapur in Maharashtra. He praised India’s expanding footprint in technology and acknowledged the country’s growing contribution to global corporate leadership.

“The CEO of Alphabet is Indian. The CEO of Microsoft is Indian. The CEO of IBM is Indian. The CEO of Adobe is Indian. The CEO of Palo Alto Networks is Indian. The CEO of Chanel is from Kolhapur, right here in this state…India does not just participate in global innovation; India leads it,” he said.

Later, the French President also stressed about the key role India has played in shaping the global industries and making a huge impact at the global stage. As the strength lies within the vast pool of talent of Indians is of utmost capacity to serve the global population.  

As Macron spoke about India’s technological strides and the global rise of Indian-origin leaders, Prime Minister Narendra Modi and External Affairs Minister S. Jaishankar, present at the event, appeared visibly pleased.

On Tuesday, Macron’s visit proved to be a spree of strategic partnership and deep collaborative relations between the two nations.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi also announced the launch of the Indo-French Centre for AI in Health, the Indo-French Centre for Digital Science and Technology, and a National Centre of Excellence for Skilling in Aeronautics, calling them key pillars of future-ready India-France collaboration.

Cooperation, defence, and clean energy

Taking to his X, PM Modi wrote, “Today’s meeting assumes significance because we have elevated the India-France relationship to a Special Global Strategic Partnership. Ours is a partnership for global stability and progress.”

“We discussed cooperation in industry, defence, clean energy, space and emerging technologies. Our nations will also build strong networks between StartUps and MSMEs, facilitate student and researcher exchanges and establish new joint innovation centres,” he added.  

Held wide-ranging talks with President Macron in Mumbai. Today’s meeting assumes significance because we have elevated the India-France relationship to a Special Global Strategic Partnership. Ours is a partnership for global stability and progress. We discussed cooperation in… pic.twitter.com/Ux7P4bG8Be

— Narendra Modi (@narendramodi) February 17, 2026

PM Modi during his address to the media emphasised about India’s role and how the nation is going through global uncertainty and during this phase he appreciated the India-France ties which proved to be a force for global stability.  

“The world is going through a period of uncertainty. In such an environment, the India-France partnership is a force for global stability. We are combining France’s expertise and India’s scale,” Modi said in his media statement.

India-France share special relationship

PM Modi expressed that India and France share a “special bond” and France is one of India’s oldest strategic partners.  

We are glad to mark 2026 as the India–France Year of Innovation. We are transforming our partnership into a partnership of the people!@EmmanuelMacron pic.twitter.com/9BgqAE4PH5

— Narendra Modi (@narendramodi) February 17, 2026

“And together with President Macron, we have given this strategic partnership unprecedented depth and energy. Based on this trust and shared vision, today we are establishing our relationship as a ‘special global strategic partnership’,” Modi said.

“This partnership is not just strategic. In today’s turbulent era, it is a partnership of global stability and global progress,” he added.