Ahmedabad, August 26, 2026: As artificial intelligence, changing learner expectations and industry demands reshape higher education, The Economic Times Education EDNXT Ahmedabad 2026 will bring together leading policymakers, educationists, university leaders and industry voices to examine what it will take for Indian universities to become more agile, industry-aligned and future-ready.
Scheduled for August 27, 2026, in Ahmedabad, the summit will open with an inaugural session focused on a larger question facing Gujarat’s higher education ecosystem: Can universities become engines of economic growth?
The inaugural session will feature Arjunbhai Modhwadia, Hon’ble Minister, Science and Technology, Forests and Environment, and Climate Change, Government of Gujarat; P Bharathi, Secretary, Science & Technology Department, Government of Gujarat; Banchhanidhi Pani, Municipal Commissioner, Ahmedabad Municipal Corporation and Chairman, Smart City Ahmedabad Development Ltd.; and Prof Bharat Bhasker, Director, IIM Ahmedabad. The session will set the context for a day-long dialogue on the role of universities in driving innovation, talent development, entrepreneurship and regional economic growth.With AI rapidly moving from an emerging technology to a foundational layer across education, one of the summit’s key conversations will focus on “University 2035: What Will Higher Education Look Like When AI Becomes Foundational?” The panel will bring together senior leaders including Prof Rajat Moona, Director, IIT Gandhinagar; Prof (Dr) Jagdish Joshi, Vice Chancellor, Gujarat University; Dr Mahendra Sharma, Joint President & Group Pro Chancellor, Ganpat University; and Adi Rishab Jain, Vice President, Swarrnim Group and Swarrnim Startup and Innovation University, alongside industry voices. The discussion will examine how AI could influence university structures, pedagogy, assessment, employability and the very definition of graduate readiness.The focus will then shift from technology adoption to the skills and capabilities universities need to build. A panel on “Co-Creating Curriculum: Can Industry and Academia Jointly Define Graduate Readiness?” will bring together leaders from institutions including Silver Oak University, Surendranagar University, Indus University, CHARUSAT and P. P. Savani University, alongside industry representation. The conversation will explore whether curriculum design can move beyond periodic industry consultations towards deeper, continuous co-creation between employers and universities.
The summit will also examine a challenge that extends beyond curriculum and technology: how universities compete for the attention of a generation accustomed to digital-first experiences. The session on “The Attention Economy vs The Education Economy: Can Universities Still Compete for the Minds of Young Learners?” will feature senior leaders including Prof Sundar S Manoharan, Director General, Pandit Deendayal Energy University; Dr CA Achyut Dani, Director General & Provost, JG University; Dr Harsh S Shah, President, Sigma University; Nimay Kalyani, Campus Director, University of Wollongong, GIFT City; and Parth Kotecha, Associate Vice President, Noble University. The discussion will look at how institutions can rethink student engagement, campus experience, communication and value proposition in an increasingly competitive education market.
Another key conversation will centre on the changing nature of industry-academia partnerships. The panel, “Industry-Academia 2.0: Moving Beyond MoUs to Measurable Outcomes,” will feature leaders from Vidhyadeep University, Sankalchand Patel University, SVKM Global University, Gokul Global University and MICA, alongside industry representation. It will question whether the traditional MoU-driven approach is delivering meaningful outcomes, and what measurable indicators should define successful university-industry collaboration.
The summit will also extend the conversation beyond higher education to the school-to-university pipeline through a session on “The New Age Learner: How Schools Can Build Agility, Adaptability & AI Readiness.”
With a strong line-up of policymakers, university leaders, academic experts and industry voices, EDNXT Ahmedabad 2026 is set to be a day of candid conversations, fresh perspectives and ideas that can shape the next chapter of higher education.
As Gujarat’s education ecosystem comes together on August 27, the summit looks forward to meaningful conversations, challenging questions and practical ideas on how institutions can prepare for a rapidly changing world of AI, industry and new-age learners.
The conversations begin in Ahmedabad.
