Rivals Meet, No Handholding: Viral Moment Between AI CEOs at New Delhi Summit

COLOMBO (News 1st); A light-hearted yet widely noticed awkward moment unfolded at the India AI Impact Summit in New Delhi today when OpenAI CEO Sam Altman and Anthropic CEO Dario Amodei opted to raise their fists instead of joining hands during the official group photograph.

The two executives, who lead two of the world’s fiercest rival AI companies, appeared momentarily unsure before settling on a fist-bump-style gesture.

The moment, captured on camera, drew amused reactions across the internet, with many noting the symbolism between the two competing AI leaders.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi stood at the centre of the high-profile lineup, which also included Google and Alphabet CEO Sundar Pichai, Scale AI founder Alexandr Wang, Meta’s Chief AI Officer, and several other major figures from the global tech industry.

Online users were quick to react to what some described as a “snub,” highlighting the history between the two CEOs.

Amodei previously served as OpenAI’s vice president of research before leaving in early 2021 to co-found Anthropic alongside several senior OpenAI researchers.

The moment unfolded during the five-day AI Impact Summit, held from February 16 to 20 at Bharat Mandapam.

The event has attracted more than 500 global AI leaders, 150 academics and researchers, and 400 chief technology officers, vice-presidents, and philanthropists.

Earlier in the day, Amodei told delegates that the world is approaching a transformative point in which AI systems will surpass most humans in most cognitive tasks. He said this shift presents unprecedented opportunities to tackle disease and poverty but also raises serious risks of misuse and economic disruption.

Altman, speaking on Thursday, shared similar ambition but focused on India’s role. He said India is currently leading the world in AI adoption and is poised to become one of the largest global markets for the technology.

According to him, India is not merely participating in the Artificial Intelligence revolution but actively leading it.

The awkward yet humorous fist-bump moment added levity to an otherwise high-stakes global summit that continues to shape discussions on the future of AI.