Tata and OpenAI partner for data centre, Google to build $15-bn India hub
At India AI Impact Summit 2026, Tata, Google and Anthropic announce key investments and partnerships
Last Updated: Feb 19, 2026, 14:48 IST4 min
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Tata Group on Thursday announced a partnership with OpenAI to build a large-scale artificial intelligence (AI) data centre in India, while Google said it would invest $15 billion to establish a full-stack AI hub in the country.
“I’m very happy to announce that we have partnered with OpenAI to build the first 100-MW capacity, which will scale to 1 GW,” said N Chandrasekaran, chairman of Tata Group, adding that Tata is deploying AI “from silicon to systems to AI-ready data centres to applications and AI agents”. Highlighting the transformative nature of AI, he said, “AI is the next big infrastructure. It is the infrastructure of intelligence. It will have a very profound impact exactly the same way as in the past other infrastructure changes have done—steam engines, electricity or internet.”
Chandrasekaran linked India’s AI momentum to its digital public infrastructure experience, citing the country’s identity and payments systems, and said adoption should reach the last citizen. “Our mission should be to make AI work for every individual and every citizen in this country. We should put the AI tools in the hands of the last person in the country.”
Under the partnership, several thousand Tata employees will gain access to Enterprise ChatGPT, while TCS will use OpenAI’s Codex tools to improve software engineering productivity. The companies also plan to jointly develop industry-specific agentic AI solutions and collaborate on global go-to-market initiatives. The infrastructure will be developed through TCS’ HyperVault unit, which was set up in 2025 to build gigawatt-scale, AI-ready data centres powered by green energy.
“India is already leading the way in AI adoption, and with its talent, ambition, and strong government support, it is well placed to help shape its future,” said Sam Altman, CEO of OpenAI, in the company's official statement. “Through OpenAI for India and our partnership with Tata Group, we’re working together to build the infrastructure, skills, and local partnerships needed to build AI with India, for India, and in India.”
OpenAI is expected to become the first customer of TCS’ data-centre business, beginning with 100 MW capacity, as part of the global AI infrastructure initiative called Stargate, which is a multi-year programme backed by major investors to build large-scale AI compute facilities. The announcement also follows TCS’ earlier disclosure of plans to invest up to $7 billion to build 1 GW of data centre capacity in India.
Earlier at the summit, the Tata Group announced partnerships with semiconductor firms, including AMD, to develop AI-ready data-centre infrastructure.
Google’s India hub
Google and Alphabet CEO Sundar Pichai said the company is building AI infrastructure in India as part of a broader investment programme: “Google is establishing a full-stack AI hub, part of our $15 billion infrastructure investment in India. When finished, this hub will house gigawatt-scale compute and a new international subsea cable gateway, bringing jobs and cutting-edge AI to people and businesses across India.”
The infrastructure push builds on a broader package of initiatives that Google had announced on Wednesday at the AI Summit. These include the America-India Connect initiative, which includes new subsea cable routes connecting India with the United States, Singapore, South Africa and Australia, positioning the country as a major global connectivity node.
Google also announced AI training programmes, including an AI Professional Certificate in partnership with government initiatives, cloud infrastructure support for the iGOT platform used by public servants, and collaborations with schools to expand AI access to students.
Pichai said AI represented a major technological shift, but access would be critical. “We cannot allow the digital divide to become an AI divide. That means investing in compute infrastructure and connectivity,” he said, adding that “AI will undeniably reshape the workforce, automating some roles, evolving others, and creating entirely new careers.”
Anthropic’s India expansion
Anthropic CEO Dario Amodei said the company had opened an office in Bengaluru and appointed Irina Ghose as managing director for India, along with partnerships with Indian enterprises including Infosys. This comes after Infosys and Anthropic, on Tuesday, announced their collaboration to develop and deploy enterprise AI solutions using Anthropic’s Claude models across sectors.
The partnership will initially focus on telecommunications through a dedicated centre of excellence to build AI agents, before expanding to financial services, manufacturing and software development. It will integrate Anthropic’s Claude and Claude Code models with Infosys’ Topaz AI offerings to help enterprises automate workflows, modernise legacy systems and accelerate software delivery.
Anthropic said India is Claude’s second-largest market and that nearly half of the country’s usage relates to technical tasks such as software development and system modernisation. “The energy and ambition in this room and across India are incredible,” he said, adding that India would play a central role in shaping AI outcomes globally.
Amodei highlighted both opportunities and risks. “On the positive side, [AI could] cure diseases that have been incurable for thousands of years, radically improve human health, and lift billions out of poverty, including the global south,” he said.
Reliance to invest Rs 10 lakh crore in AI infra
On Thursday, Reliance Industries (RIL) announced plans to invest Rs 10 lakh crore over seven years to build AI infrastructure and services through its Jio Intelligence unit, at the AI Summit. This will include gigawatt-scale data centres and nationwide edge computing integrated with its telecom network.
RIL said it has begun construction of multi-gigawatt, AI-ready data centres in Jamnagar, with more than 120 MW expected to come online in the second half of 2026 and a pathway to gigawatt-scale compute capacity, supported by captive green energy. “India cannot afford to rent intelligence. Therefore, we will reduce the cost of intelligence as dramatically as we did the cost of data,” said Mukesh Ambani, chairman and managing director, RIL.
Adani’s $100 billion AI data centres
The Adani Group announced a commitment of $100 billion earlier this week to build renewable energy-powered, AI-ready data centres by 2035 and expand capacity to about 5 GW.
First Published: Feb 19, 2026, 14:54
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