What a miss! Ola's Krutrim fails to hail a ride at India's biggest AI summit

Just days prior to the commencement of the India AI Impact Summit 2026 at Bharat Mandapam, Bhavish Aggarwal’s AI startup, Krutrim, made bold claims about its presence. The company, in a LinkedIn post, touted its role in the AI evolution, stating, "India’s AI shift is moving from experimentation to real production scale." They extended an invitation to summit attendees to visit their booth, promising a demonstration of how their platform integrates AI models and cloud infrastructure to facilitate the transition from concept to execution. They specified their location as Hall 4, Booth 28, encouraging enterprises, developers, and policymakers to engage with their team. However, as thousands of delegates gathered for the flagship event, Krutrim's visibility was notably lacking. The company did not feature prominently on the main stage, with no senior leadership participating in panel discussions, and no significant product announcements made. This absence was conspicuous, especially given the hype generated in their pre-event outreach. When approached by Business Today for comments regarding their lack of presence, the company opted not to respond. Initially regarded as a leading player in the Indian AI landscape, Krutrim had made headlines since its inception in 2023, becoming the nation’s first AI unicorn by January 2024. The firm aimed to create a comprehensive ecosystem encompassing foundational models, cloud services, and consumer applications. Their offerings include the Krutrim large language model, Krutrim Cloud for AI computing, and Kruti, a personal assistant designed for task management and service booking. The summit’s agenda, heavily focused on sovereign AI, domestic infrastructure, and enterprise uptake, presented a prime opportunity for Krutrim to showcase its advancements. Meanwhile, competitors like Bengaluru’s Sarvam AI and conversational AI company Gnani.ai took advantage of the stage, unveiling new language and voice models designed for deployment and governance within India. Krutrim’s low profile can be attributed to internal challenges, as the company has experienced significant organizational upheaval over the past year. Reports indicate multiple rounds of layoffs in 2025, primarily impacting the linguistics team crucial for the development of Indic AI systems. In June, a “strategic realignment” led to dozens of job cuts, followed by over 100 roles eliminated in July, and another 50 in September, totaling nearly 200 layoffs since the company’s launch. Furthermore, the firm has seen high-level executives depart, with at least six key leaders in areas such as AI data and cloud architecture leaving since April. Despite ambitious product launches, Krutrim has struggled to achieve substantial market traction. Its foundational models compete in a saturated market where performance metrics and ecosystem support are vital. The Kruti personal assistant app, which debuted in mid-2025, has garnered around 100,000 downloads on Google Play—a modest figure when compared to established global AI assistants and other domestic competitors. In contrast, Sarvam’s recently launched Indus app surpassed 50,000 downloads within its first week. As India’s AI initiatives transition from theoretical discussions to practical implementation, Krutrim’s absence at such a pivotal event has left a gap that its rivals were quick to fill. Once a trailblazer as the nation’s first AI unicorn, Krutrim now faces the pressing question: Is it gearing up for a significant comeback, or is it at risk of being overshadowed as the competitive landscape rapidly evolves?