Naidu Brings Google’s $10 bn AI Hub to Vizag

Vijaywada:Over 10 years after losing Hyderabad to Telangana, Andhra Pradesh has finally got its moment of glory, with search and IT giant Google deciding to set up its largest artificial intelligence facility outside the United States in Visakhapatnam. It will include a one-gigawatt data centre campus, new large-scale energy sources, and an expanded fibre-optic network.

“It’s the largest AI hub that we are going to be investing in anywhere in the world outside of the US. Google has also plans for the centre to eventually scale to multiple gigawatts,” said Google Cloud chief executive Thomas Kurian. The project is expected to create up to 6,000 direct jobs and 30,000 total jobs in Andhra Pradesh as well.

It was a repeat of the Microsoft moment that Chief Minister N. Chandrababu Naidu in Hyderabad had when he was heading the government of undivided Andhra Pradesh.

“This was an auspicious day for all. Google’s presence would make Visakhapatnam the nation’s first Artificial Intelligence (AI) hub… This is now our project and the state government would extend full support to Google to make it successful,” Naidu said, speaking at a Bharat AI Shakti event in New Delhi on Tuesday.

Commenting on the announcement, Prime Minister Narendra Modi, in a post on X, said the multi-faceted investment ‘aligns with our vision to build a Viksit Bharat. “It will be a powerful force in democratising technology. It will also ensure AI for all, delivering cutting-edge tools to our citizens, boosting our digital economy and securing India's place as a global technology leader!” Modi said.

Stating that Visakhapatnam was able to get Google data centre only with the support of the Prime Minister, state IT minister Lokesh said, “This is a historical event for both AP and Bharath, which would help with economic empowerment at the ground level and enable India to become an AI-powered nation.”

He predicted transformative changes in Andhra Pradesh and youth in the state to be ready for the next-level revolution.

Present at the event were Chief Minister N. Chandrababu Naidu, IT minister Nara Lokesh, Union ministers Nirmala Sitharaman and Ashwini Vaishnav and Google Cloud CEO Thomas Kurian.

“I had advocated the concept of having 'One IT professional for one family' and am now promoting the 'One family – one entrepreneur' message. It is the time to work smart with advanced technology. We brought Microsoft to Hyderabad Now we are bringing Google to Visakhapatnam. Innovations are taking place in technology,” Naidu said.

“Digital connectivity, data centres, AI and real-time data collections are important. AP is at the forefront in embracing technology. A developed India by 2047 is our goal.”

Apart from Naidu and Lokesh, the event was attended by electronics and IT minister Ashwini Vaishnaw, finance minister Nirmala Sitharaman, among others.

Speaking at the event, Sitharaman also said under the Modi regime, several policy enablers have been part of the governance since 2014 and appreciated Andhra Pradesh chief minister Naidu for his earlier stints in a letter that has shown what he can do to scale up digital infrastructure.

Vaishnaw also lauded the Andhra Pradesh government for giving speedy approvals for Google's investment in the state. “This data centre will be part of the AI mission. It will augment the AI infrastructure, which is needed for making sure that our youth and startups get the facilities that are required for their products and their services,” he said.