Google’s Biggest Investment in India

BENGALURU, Oct 14 (Reuters) – Google announced that it will invest $15 billion over the next five years to build a large artificial intelligence (AI) data centre hub in Andhra Pradesh. This marks the company’s largest-ever investment in India.

A Major AI Hub Outside the U.S.

“This will be our biggest AI hub outside the United States,” said Google Cloud CEO Thomas Kurian during an event in New Delhi.

Location: Visakhapatnam Port City

The 1-gigawatt capacity campus will be developed in Visakhapatnam by Alphabet Inc’s (GOOGL.O) Google Cloud unit. While state officials had initially estimated the investment at $10 billion, Google has now confirmed the final figure at $15 billion.

Rising Competition Among Tech Giants

Global tech giants are racing to expand data centre infrastructure amid soaring demand for AI services. Google alone has committed $85 billion this year toward data infrastructure worldwide.

AI’s Heavy Computing Needs

AI requires enormous processing power, making advanced data centres essential. These facilities connect thousands of chips in clusters. Microsoft and Amazon have already invested billions in India, a market with nearly one billion internet users.

Largest Facility in Asia

Reuters first reported on Google’s expansion in July, noting that the Visakhapatnam hub will be the largest in Asia by both capacity and investment. It also forms part of Google’s broader Asia-Pacific strategy, which includes projects in Singapore, Malaysia, and Thailand.

Strategic Importance

“In today’s era, where data is the new oil, such projects provide a strategic edge to both the state and the country,” said Andhra Pradesh IT Minister Nara Lokesh.