35 Nations Join US-Led Pax Silica Initiative to Build Trusted AI Supply Chains

Thirty-five countries, including India, have formally joined a United States-led initiative aimed at establishing trusted and resilient supply chains to support the growth of artificial intelligence technologies. The announcement came at the second Pax Silica Summit held in Washington on Thursday, marking a significant expansion of the coalition since its inception.

Jacob Helberg, US Under Secretary of State for Economic Affairs, confirmed that all 35 participating nations signed a Joint Statement on AI Opportunity, expressing their commitment to what he described as a pro-growth and pro-innovation regulatory framework suited for the AI era. Helberg framed the initiative as a collective pledge centered on trusted supply chains, private sector mobilization, and the infrastructure required to drive the next century of technological progress.

Several new countries joined the Pax Silica initiative on the sidelines of the summit, including Argentina, Germany, the Netherlands, Chile, Costa Rica, Greece, Kazakhstan, Panama, and the European Union.

India was represented by S Krishnan, Secretary in the Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology, alongside Nagraj Naidu, Additional Secretary (Americas) in the Ministry of External Affairs, and delegates from Indian industry.

The Indian delegation engaged in substantive discussions with foreign governments and industry stakeholders on deepening collaboration across semiconductors, artificial intelligence, and resilient technology supply chains — areas increasingly seen as strategic priorities on the global stage.

Helberg emphasized that the AI race will not be won through regulation alone. "The future of AI will not be determined by who regulates first. It will be determined by who builds first and builds the most capacity. More energy. More compute. More chips. More talent. More builders," he said, calling for accelerated innovation and a welcoming environment for private investment. He added that the shared aspiration is to build an AI future that serves people, strengthens economies, and empowers entrepreneurship, innovation, and the rule of law.

The Pax Silica Initiative was launched in December last year with a small group of founding nations. India joined in February, on the sidelines of the AI Impact Summit in New Delhi. Thursday's summit marked a broader expansion of the grouping, with 35 countries now formally aligned on the goal of securing and scaling the supply chains that will underpin the global AI ecosystem.