Mumbai, Sept. 11 -- Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman on Friday called for stronger safeguards around artificial intelligence as the use of agentic AI expands, while cautioning regulators against stifling innovation.

Speaking at the Global Fintech Fest 2026, Sitharaman said that the rapid rise of agentic AI is creating risks that cannot be left for society to deal with after the technology has moved ahead.

"I raise this not to cause alarm, but to emphasize institutional accountability towards larger humanity," she said, questioning whether the AI industry was doing enough to reassure the public about the safety of increasingly powerful systems.

"Who from the global AI industry will stand up and reassure the public?" she asked. "Who w...