French artificial intelligence firm Mistral AI is in advanced talks with the Karnataka government to set up a Global Capability Centre in Bengaluru, marking the company’s first entry into India. The announcement came after discussions between Karnataka’s Large and Medium Industries Minister M.B. Patil and Mistral AI executives during the World Economic Forum 2026 in Davos, Switzerland.
According to Patil, the proposed Bengaluru centre would initially focus on engineering operations before expanding into advanced research and science capabilities. The minister emphasized that Karnataka would extend full support to facilitate Mistral’s expansion, underlining the state’s strong position as a global AI talent hub.
Bengaluru, home to more than half of India’s AI and machine learning professionals, is ranked as the world’s second-largest AI talent cluster. Patil also pointed to the state’s investment in innovation through its three Centres of Excellence in AI, developed in partnership with the Indian Institute of Science, NASSCOM, and other partners.
Mistral’s move comes amid increasing competition from major AI players expanding into India. Anthropic is preparing to open its Bengaluru office under the leadership of Irina Ghose, while OpenAI has disclosed plans for a New Delhi office. Founded in 2023 by former DeepMind and Meta researchers, Mistral AI has become Europe’s most valuable AI startup, reaching a $13.8 billion valuation after a $2 billion funding round in 2025.
At Davos, the Karnataka delegation also engaged with global firms including PayPal, and Imperial College London.
