NEW DELHI: Galgotiyas University on Wednesday issued an apology and took damage control measures, placing full blame on the professors managing the pavilion, after the university sparked a huge controversy over its false claims about an “in-house innovation” display at its booth. Artificial Intelligence Impact Summit 2026. In its apology, the university said the professor Neha SinghThe person in charge of its exhibition hall was “well-informed” and “did not understand the technical origins of the products on display”. The press release further accused her of being overly enthusiastic on camera and while talking to the media, even though she was not authorized to speak to the media.
The apology contrasts with previous statements from Galgotia University, which explicitly called the incident a “propaganda campaign” against the institute. The university had previously said it never said it did not build or claimed to have built the robot dog, and stressed that its focus is on enabling students to learn through exposure to advanced global technologies.
From publicity to damage control – a timeline
First reaction: “We did not build or claim to have built a robot dog”
In its initial statement after the controversy erupted, the university claimed it did not build or claimed to have built the robot dog and emphasized its focus on student learning.“Let us be clear – Galgotias did not build this robot, nor do we claim it. But what we are building are the minds that will soon design, engineer and manufacture such technology in Bharat. Innovation knows no borders. Learning should neither. We will continue to source the best technologies from around the world so that our students can study them, challenge them, improve them and ultimately create world-class solutions for the world from India.“The university maintains that exposure to global technology is part of its academic mission and the robot is intended for students to learn and experiment with.
Second response: Allegation of “publicity campaign”
In a subsequent statement, the university escalated its defense, claiming it had been targeted.“Faculty and students at Galgotias University are deeply distressed by the propaganda campaign against our university. We want to make it clear that programming robots is part of our efforts to equip students to learn programming for artificial intelligence and develop and deploy real-world skills using tools and resources available globally, because it takes an hour to develop AI talent.”
Professor clarifies: ‘I take responsibility’
Professor Neha Singh, who represented the university at the summit, later issued her own clarification.“The controversy occurred because something might not have been expressed clearly. I take responsibility, perhaps, for not conveying it correctly because it was done with a lot of energy and enthusiasm and at a high speed, so I might not have been as eloquent as I normally would. Also, the intention might not have been understood correctly. The important point is about the robot dog – we can’t claim that we made it. I tell people, we introduce it to our students to inspire them to create better things themselves. Our university contributes to educating future leaders by providing cutting-edge technology in the field of artificial intelligence, and will continue to do so. “
Latest response: “Delegates are ill-informed”
In its apology, the university avoided any responsibility and accused its faculty of providing “factually incorrect information.”“We at Galgotias University would like to sincerely apologize for the chaos caused by the recent Al Summit. One of our reps in charge of the pavilion was not well informed. She was unaware of the product’s technical origins and, due to her passion for appearing on camera, provided factually incorrect information even though she was not authorized to speak to the media,” the statement read.The apology also stated that the incident was not an intentional act and clarified that there was no “institutional intent” behind the innovative “misinformation.”It said: “We ask for your understanding as there is no institutional intention to misrepresent this innovation. Galgotias University remains firmly committed to academic integrity, transparency and responsible representation of our work. Understanding the sentiment of the organizers, we have vacated the venue.”
What is this line about?
The controversy started after the robot dog displayed at the university’s stall was identified as Unitree Go2, a commercially available four-legged robot manufactured by Chinese robotics company Unitree and priced around Rs 2-3 lakh in India.Critics said the robot’s presentation at the summit as a university-developed product raised questions about the display of imported technology at a national artificial intelligence event aimed at emphasizing domestic innovation.The Galgotias University Pavilion for the Artificial Intelligence Summit reportedly had its power cut off after being asked to evacuate the expo following heightened scrutiny.Later, another product, the Football Drone Arena, also claimed to be an in-house innovation of the university, but was found to be fake as many on social media highlighted its similarity to a Korean product already on the market called the Stryker V3 ARF.
What started the fight?
Introducing the robot, Professor Neha Singh earlier told DD News: “We are the first private university to invest over Rs 350 crore in artificial intelligence and we have dedicated data science and artificial intelligence modules on campus. Orion has been developed by the Center of Excellence and as you can see, it can take all shapes and sizes.”“It’s also very playful. It’s also very playful and it can do little tasks like surveillance, surveillance,” she added.
Opposition reaction
The controversy prompted a strong reaction from opposition leaders. The Congress Ashwini Vashno is also indulging in the same lies, promoting Chinese robots at the India summit. ““The Modi government has done irreparable damage to the country’s image – they have turned artificial intelligence into a joke – and with the power of our data, we can become a world leader in this field,” it added.Leader of Opposition in the Lok Sabha Rahul Gandhi termed the summit a “disorganized PR spectacle”. In a post on
