Union Commerce and Industry Minister Piyush Goyal has met Microsoft India President Puneet Chandok to discuss expanding data-centre capacity in the country and strengthening India's position in artificial intelligence. The meeting comes as global technology companies continue to increase investments in India's cloud and AI infrastructure.
The discussions are part of India's wider push to build the infrastructure needed to support growing demand for AI services, cloud computing and digital technologies.
India wants more data-centre capacity for the AI boom
Data centres have become a key part of India's technology strategy as companies and governments look to deploy increasingly powerful AI applications. More computing capacity is needed to store data, train and run AI models and support cloud-based services.
India's data-centre capacity crossed around 2.1 GW by the middle of 2026, according to industry estimates cited by Financial Express. The country is expected to add significantly more capacity as demand from AI and cloud services continues to grow.
Microsoft is expanding its AI infrastructure
Microsoft is already one of the major technology companies investing heavily in India's digital infrastructure. Its latest discussions with the government come as the company plans a much larger expansion of its global data-centre footprint.
Microsoft is reportedly targeting around 38 GW of data-centre capacity worldwide by 2032, more than three times its current footprint. The expansion is being driven largely by increasing demand for cloud computing and artificial intelligence.
AI is changing India's data-centre requirements
Traditional cloud services already require large amounts of computing infrastructure, but AI is increasing the demand for high-performance systems. Generative AI, AI agents and other advanced applications require powerful processors and large-scale data infrastructure.
This is one reason India is trying to attract more investment into data centres, semiconductors, cloud services and AI infrastructure. The government sees these areas as important for building a larger domestic technology ecosystem.
India is competing for global AI investment
India is increasingly positioning itself as a major destination for AI and data-centre investments. Major global technology companies, including Microsoft, Amazon and Google, have committed billions of dollars towards cloud, AI and data-centre infrastructure in the country.
The government is also promoting the IndiaAI Mission, which aims to expand access to computing resources and encourage the development of AI applications suited to India's needs.
Energy and skilled workers will be major challenges
Building more data centres is not only about investment and land. These facilities require enormous amounts of electricity, cooling infrastructure and specialised technical workers.
India's rapid expansion of data centres is already raising questions about whether the country will have enough skilled professionals to construct, operate and maintain these facilities. Energy availability and efficient cooling will also become increasingly important as AI workloads grow.
India's AI ambitions are moving beyond software
For years, India's technology industry has been strongly associated with software services and IT outsourcing. The growing data-centre push represents a shift towards building more of the physical infrastructure needed for the next generation of technology.
The meeting between Piyush Goyal and Microsoft's India leadership is therefore significant as India attempts to attract more investment while developing the computing capacity needed for its AI ambitions.
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