Sundar Pichai, Neal Mohan: Indian-Origin Executives Shine In Time 100 Most Influential People 2026 List

From business leaders like Google chief executive Sundar Pichai and YouTube head Neal Mohan to chef Vikas Khanna and actor Ranbir Kapoor, Time’s list of The 100 Most Influential People of 2026 featured Indians and Indian-origin individuals along with global leaders and rising voices across the world.

The list, which included short profiles of each individual, described Pichai as the leader who guided the company into the artificial intelligence race at a time when OpenAI had already captured attention after the release of ChatGPT in 2022.

“After OpenAI captured the public imagination with ChatGPT’s 2022 launch, Google faced questions about its leadership in AI. Pichai responded decisively, merging the company’s premier labs, Google Brain and DeepMind, to create Gemini, which the company rolled out as a stand-alone product and integrated with Search, Android, Chrome, Google Cloud, and more,” said Andrew Ng, founder of DeepLearning.AI and co-founder of Google Brain, in his note describing the influence of the Google CEO.

Ng credited Pichai for bringing artificial intelligence to the masses on an unprecedented scale.

“Few leaders have brought artificial intelligence to more people than Sundar Pichai. Since becoming CEO of Google in 2015, he has overseen the translation and implementation of Google’s research breakthroughs into products used by billions.”

YouTube’s Mohan, whose parents hailed from Uttar Pradesh’s capital Lucknow, was described as one of the most approachable executives who turned the video-sharing service into a phenomenon with its omnipresence.

“Mohan supercharged the platform’s growth and omnipresence. It’s on every screen in the home. It’s on every media planner’s list, and in 2025 it became the most popular video provider on TV sets in the U.S. This wasn’t entirely Mohan’s doing—Google’s products tend to dominate whatever space they enter—but he played a key role,” said Belinda Luscombe, Time editor-at-large.

“Mohan has enough technical depth to earn the respect of software engineers and sufficient charm to attract advertisers. He has negotiated deals with the biggest sports leagues in the world, yet his warmth has earned the loyalty of creators,” Luscombe added.

Chef Vikas Khanna has also been hailed for showcasing India’s culinary skills as a form of soft power, while actor Ranbir Kapoor is credited with authentically representing the country’s evolving youth.