Google to invest over Rs 52,000 crore in the Indian state to develop Asia's largest data center: Report

Sundar Pichai-led technology giant Google will reportedly invest $6 billion (over Rs 52,000 crore) to establish a 1-gigawatt data center in Andhra Pradesh, India, Reuters reported, citing government officials.

The facility, to be built in the coastal city of Visakhapatnam, marks Google’s first such investment in India and is expected to be the largest data center project in Asia in both capacity and capital outlay.

Of the $6 billion, $2 billion will be allocated toward the development of renewable energy capacity to power the data center, the report said.

The investment forms part of Alphabet’s broader $75 billion global commitment to data center expansion announced earlier this year, despite prevailing macroeconomic uncertainties. It's worth noting that the project will transform India's position in the global digital economy.

The announcement comes amid a wider digital infrastructure race in India, where global tech companies are ramping up investments to meet the surging computational demands of generative AI and cloud computing. Microsoft recently pledged $3.7 billion toward its cloud and AI infrastructure in India, while Amazon has committed $13 billion by 2030.

Separately, investment firm Blackstone and companies such as OpenAI, NTT Data, and Reliance Group are also reportedly eyeing large-scale data center projects across the country.

Since losing Hyderabad, Andhra Pradesh has intensified efforts to attract private capital, particularly in the tech and energy sectors. Andhra Pradesh's IT minister, Nara Lokesh, said the state has already secured commitments for 1.6 GW of data center capacity and aims to build 6 GW over the next five years.

He added that the state is preparing for an energy demand surge, estimating 10 GW of power, primarily renewable, will be required to support data center operations in the coming years.

In parallel, the state is planning to enhance its connectivity infrastructure with three new undersea cable landing stations in Visakhapatnam, aiming to offer international bandwidth capacity “two times what Mumbai has today.”