As tech companies race to secure the computing power needed to train and deploy artificial intelligence systems, Meta is making its first AI infrastructure bet in India, striking a data center partnership with conglomerate Reliance Industries in a market that is rapidly emerging as a hub for AI infrastructure.
The partnership, announced on Wednesday, will see Meta collaborate with Reliance on a 168-megawatt AI-enabled data center in Jamnagar, Gujarat, expanding a relationship that has evolved from Meta’s multibillion-dollar investment in Reliance’s Jio Platforms to a $100 million joint venture launched last year to develop enterprise AI solutions for customers in India and overseas markets.
The deal comes as India cements its status as a natural destination for AI infrastructure investments, with tech giants seeking new geographies for data centers amid soaring demand for computing power to train and deploy AI models. Companies including Microsoft, Amazon, Google, OpenAI, and Uber have recently announced AI and cloud infrastructure investments in the country, which has rapidly expanded its data center footprint in recent years.
The rush into India extends beyond global technology firms. Earlier this week, Blackstone-backed AirTrunk announced plans to invest $30 billion to build 5 gigawatts of data center capacity in the country by 2030, while Indian conglomerates including Adani and Tata Consultancy Services have also unveiled major data center expansion plans aimed at supporting AI workloads.
