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Google’s parent company, Alphabet Inc., has announced a massive $15 billion (£11.29 billion) investment to establish a state-of-the-art AI data hub in southern India’s Andhra Pradesh state. The facility, to be located in the coastal city of Visakhapatnam, will become a crucial part of Google’s expanding global network of artificial intelligence centres, which currently span 12 countries.
“This will be the largest AI hub we are investing in anywhere outside the United States,” said Thomas Kurien, CEO of Google Cloud, during an event held in New Delhi on Tuesday. Kurien explained that the investment will be distributed over a five-year period, reinforcing Google’s long-term commitment to India’s growing digital ecosystem.
The announcement arrives amid calls from U.S. President Donald Trump urging American firms to prioritise domestic investments. Despite this, India continues to emerge as a strategic destination for AI and cloud infrastructure development, thanks to its affordable data costs and a rapidly expanding internet user base that has attracted major technology companies worldwide.
Alphabet CEO Sundar Pichai highlighted the significance of the new project, stating that the Visakhapatnam facility “will bring our industry-leading technology to enterprises and users in India, accelerating AI innovation and driving growth across the country.”
According to the Andhra Pradesh government, a formal agreement finalising the project will be signed on Tuesday. “It is a massive leap for our state’s digital future, innovation, and global standing,” said Nara Lokesh, the state’s technology minister, welcoming Alphabet’s investment as a landmark achievement.
The ambitious project aims to integrate cloud computing infrastructure with renewable energy systems and an enhanced fibre-optic network, aligning with Alphabet’s global sustainability goals. It also supports the Andhra Pradesh government’s vision to develop 6GW of data centre capacity by 2029, as reported by Bloomberg News.
Data centres form the backbone of modern digital infrastructure, housing the computing and networking systems that organisations depend on to store, process, and distribute data. These facilities typically include servers, storage devices, routers, and firewalls, supported by extensive power and cooling mechanisms to maintain optimal performance.
In a bid to attract global investors, the Andhra Pradesh government has introduced several incentives, including subsidised land and electricity, to position the state as a leading data hub in Asia.
India’s data centre industry has witnessed extraordinary growth over the past five years. According to JLL’s India Data Centre Market Dynamics 2024 report, the sector surpassed 1GW of operational capacity in 2024, nearly tripling its 2019 levels. This rapid expansion highlights India’s growing importance in the global digital economy, as companies like Alphabet look to the country for AI-driven innovation, scalable infrastructure, and sustainable energy integration.
With Alphabet’s $15 billion commitment, Andhra Pradesh is poised to become one of the most significant nodes in Google’s global AI network—cementing India’s role as a central player in the next era of technological transformation.
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