Overview
- Google said it will invest $15 billion over five years to build an AI-focused data center and research site in Visakhapatnam, Andhra Pradesh.
- Google Cloud CEO Thomas Kurian described the facility as the company’s largest site outside the United States with capacity on the order of several gigawatts.
- The new Indian site will be integrated into a global network that links Google data centers in 12 other countries.
- India’s IT minister Ashwini Vaishnaw welcomed the plan as aligning with national AI ambitions, and Andhra Pradesh official Nara Lokesh called it a game-changing investment.
- The move comes as AI companies expand in India, with Anthropic planning an office, OpenAI expressing interest and offering a low-cost subscription since August, and Perplexity partnering with Airtel.