VOIWORLD/Sumit Chaturvedi
Google’s parent company, Alphabet, has announced a $15 billion investment to build a new artificial intelligence and data centre hub in Visakhapatnam, Andhra Pradesh. The facility will be the company’s largest AI hub outside the United States and part of its expanding global network across 12 countries.
Thomas Kurian, CEO of Google Cloud, said at an event in New Delhi that the investment will be spread over the next five years. The announcement comes at a time when the US administration has urged domestic companies to focus more on home investments. Despite this, India continues to be a prime destination for cloud and AI infrastructure because of its low data costs, growing digital economy, and rapidly expanding internet user base.
Alphabet CEO Sundar Pichai said the new facility will accelerate AI innovation and growth across India, giving enterprises access to advanced technology infrastructure. The Andhra Pradesh government is expected to sign a formal agreement to finalise the project, with state technology minister Nara Lokesh calling it “a massive leap for the state’s digital future and global standing.”
The project will integrate AI and cloud infrastructure with renewable energy and an expanded fibre-optic network. It aligns with the state’s goal of developing 6GW of data centre capacity by 2029.
India’s data centre industry has been growing at record speed, surpassing 1GW in 2024 — nearly three times the capacity recorded in 2019. Andhra Pradesh’s offer of subsidised land and electricity has been a major draw for investors looking to build digital infrastructure at scale.
The new AI hub is expected to boost India’s position in the global technology landscape, generate jobs, and support its ambition to become a major player in the AI economy.
