Microsoft announced on Tuesday that it would invest approximately $17.5 billion in cloud and AI infrastructure in India, marking a significant step for the company to become the U.S. tech giant’s largest investment in Asia.
The company indicated that the investments, which will extend hyperscale infrastructure, incorporate AI into national infrastructure, and enhance workforce preparedness, will be distributed over four years based on the $3 billion commitment it made in January.
The announcement comes after a meeting between Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Microsoft CEO Satya Nadella, during which the two leaders discussed the ambitions of AI in India. Modi also held a meeting with other tech CEOs on Tuesday, such as the CEO of Intel, Lip-Bu Tan.
Nadella praised Modi in a post on social media and added that investments by Microsoft would “help build the infrastructure, skills, and sovereign capabilities needed for India’s AI-first future.”
The drive comes after an effort by India to play AI catch-up, whereby Modi is focusing on establishing an all-encompassing tech ecosystem and AI independence.
Recently, Google and Amazon Web Services have also committed their data centers to invest $15 billion and $8 billion in the country, respectively.
In a post on X (formerly known as Twitter), Modi wrote, referring to Microsoft’s investment that “The youth of India will harness this opportunity to innovate and leverage the power of AI for a better planet.”
Microsoft intends to use the funding to expand its current cloud and AI infrastructure to reach customers across regions in India. It now provides “Sovereign Public Cloud” and “Sovereign Private Cloud” services in several regions.
The firm also indicated that it was doubling its January goal of training 20 million Indians in AI by 2030 and expressed hopes of expanding and training over 22,000 employees in the country.
Microsoft also declared on Tuesday that it would be offering its Azure AI powers in two major digital platforms in the Ministry of Labor and Employment in India and the National Career Service.
Union Minister of Electronics and Information Technology of India, Ashwini Vaishnaw, referred to the investment as an indicator of India becoming a trusted global partner in technology and speeding the transition to AI-enabled public infrastructure.
Although India is decades behind the world leaders in terms of new technologies such as chips and AI, the huge consumer base of the country and state funding have attracted larger technology operators.
The country has also sanctioned 10 chip projects under its “India Semiconductor Mission” with an investment of more than $18 billion.
US chip designer Intel entered an agreement with Mumbai-based Tata Electronics to work on chip offerings in the country and on the products of AI applications.
