Mahindra Group CEO Anish Shah Recalls Trump Meet in Davos — "We Need More Like You"

Mahindra Group CEO Dr Anish Shah met with Donald Trump at the ongoing World Economic Forum Annual Meeting in Davos, Switzerland. Speaking to NDTV Profit, Shah revealed the little details of the 'positive dialogue' he had with the US President, who personally lauded the conglomerate's industrial footprint in America. 

The exchange between Anish Shah and Trump was part of a high-profile reception at the WEF, attended by some of the biggest corporate faces in the world, including Apple's Tim Cook and Microsoft's Satya Nadella.

"I had a brief dialogue with him on the Mahindra Group as well, which was a good, positive dialogue from our standpoint," Shah told NDTV Profit. "Just very friendly. I mentioned I was from the Mahindra Group, and he responded, 'Good group, very good group,' and he clearly knew about us and said, 'We need more like you.'"

The recognition comes in the midst of Mahindra continuing to expand its manufacturing presence in the United States, where it primarily operates through  Mahindra Automotive North America (MANA) and Mahindra Ag North America (MAgNA).

Beyond the Trump meet, Shah also expressed optimism for India's economy and Mahindra's core sectors, particularly its dominant SUV and tractor businesses. He noted that the Indian economy is in "very, very strong shape", driven by a surge in demand, particularly from the private sector.

"The Indian economy is in very good shape right now. The actions that have been taken by the government over the past 12 months—more so the acceleration over the past six months—have really put the economy even stronger than it was," Shah said. "We are seeing tremendous demand across automobiles, tractors, our resorts, for our logistics business, for our real estate business."

Offering an outlook on 2026, Shah said the group is working to integrate artificial intelligence across its operations to boost productivity and enhance customer experience.

"You will see more from us on AI as well, as we have been a leader in the AI front. We haven't spoken a lot about it because we typically prefer to speak after we've done something, which we shall do in this case as well. I don't see AI as something that is a huge big bang, a magic wand that transforms everything overnight. Each of our leaders has to own it, drive it," he concluded.