UC San Diego's first U.S.-India Forum has led to new research partnerships between the university and Indian corporations it did not name, the school announced Wednesday, Sept. 2.

The two-day forum, held April 21-22 in La Jolla, brought government ministers, industry executives and academics together to discuss collaboration in artificial intelligence, health care, defense and economic growth. UC San Diego's 21st Century India Center organized the event with three partners: Indiaspora, the Motwani Jadeja Family Foundation and the U.S.-India Strategic Partnership Forum (USISPF).

Prabal Gupta, executive director of U.S.-India Initiatives at UC San Diego, said leading Indian corporations and institutions began underwriting long-term collaborations with the university in the months after the April forum. The university did not disclose the companies or financial terms.

Those collaborations cover joint research, talent development and entrepreneurship, according to the university.

Chancellor Pradeep K. Khosla participated alongside speakers including Tim Roemer, a 1979 UC San Diego alumnus who served as U.S. ambassador to India and as a U.S. congressman from Indiana, and Ajay Kumar, chairperson of India's Union Public Service Commission (UPSC) and former defense secretary for the Indian government.

"UC San Diego has the research depth and convening power to turn these conversations into policy to bring these two countries closer together," Roemer said in a university statement.

Gaurav Khanna, an associate professor of economics at UC San Diego's School for Global Policy and Strategy, presented research showing that Indian immigrants made up 1% of the U.S. population in 2022 but accounted for 13% of U.S. patents filed on behalf of American companies. The UCSD article described India as the world's sixth-largest economy at $3.92 trillion in 2025-26.

Achyuta Adhvaryu, the Tata Chancellor's Endowed Professor and director of the 21st Century India Center at the School for Global Policy and Strategy, organized and led the forum. He said the university setting allowed government officials, CEOs and academics to speak candidly without the pressure of closing a deal.

AI and education topped the list of collaboration priorities. Nuclear energy, clean technology, defense, health care and cultural exchange were also flagged as areas for deeper partnership.

The university said organizers plan to continue the partnership but did not announce a date for a second forum.