The inaugural edition of the World Audio Visual and Entertainment Summit (WAVES 2025) concluded in Mumbai after a four-day run that brought together global stakeholders from the media and entertainment sectors.
The event hosted industry leaders, policymakers, startups, academics, and the public, positioning India as a key player in the global creative economy.
WAVES 2025 featured more than 140 knowledge sessions, with over 100 international speakers across eight venues. Sessions focused on broadcasting, digital media, animation, gaming, and emerging technologies such as AI and virtual production. Speakers included Mukesh Ambani, Netflix’s Ted Sarandos, YouTube CEO Neal Mohan, Adobe CEO Shantanu Narayen, and Meta’s Adam Mosseri. Key Bollywood and South Indian cinema figures also participated in discussions on the future of storytelling and content creation.
Masterclasses were conducted by industry figures including Aamir Khan, Farhan Akhtar, and Michael Lehmann. These sessions offered hands-on learning in acting, directing, and filmmaking. Additional sessions covered topics such as AR lens design, AI avatars, and game development using generative AI.
Held as part of WAVES 2025, the WAVES Bazaar provided a platform for international collaboration in creative industries. More than 3,000 B2B meetings were conducted. Key announcements included:
• A proposed Indian Film Festival in New Zealand through collaboration between Film India Screen Collective and Screen Canterbury NZ.
• Ongoing MoU discussions between India’s Only Much Louder and Russia’s Gazprom Media to co-produce comedy and music content.
• A strategic multi-year partnership between Prime Video and South Korea’s CJ ENM to distribute Korean content globally.
The event also saw the Global Media Dialogue 2025, attended by representatives from 77 countries, resulting in the adoption of the WAVES Declaration. The declaration focuses on narrowing the global digital divide, supporting ethical content creation, and promoting peace through media.
The event also highlighted India’s Create in India initiative, which identified over 700 global creators, with plans to support content in 25 Indian languages in future editions.
Announced during Day 3 of WAVES 2025, the IICT is being developed in Mumbai as a National Centre of Excellence dedicated to the AVGC-XR (Animation, Visual Effects, Gaming, Comics, and Extended Reality) sector.
The institute will support training, research, and international collaboration. MoUs were signed with industry associations to develop the IICT into a globally recognised institution.