Microsoft CEO Nadella says excited about data centre growth, holds talks with PM Modi
Satya Nadella says he is excited about Microsoft’s data centre growth in India after holding talks with PM Modi, as the company expands AI and cloud capacity
Microsoft CEO Satya Nadella on Wednesday (December 10) said that he was upbeat about the upcoming data centre capacity the tech giant is setting up in India, adding he has discussed the company’s investment plan with Prime Minister Narendra Modi.
"We're thrilled about all the data centre capacity that is coming live. We already have stuff in Pune, Chennai and Mumbai. We are very excited about our India South Central cloud region, based in Hyderabad, that's going to come up next year," Nadella said at a Microsoft event in Delhi.
Microsoft’s $17.5 billion India investment
Earlier, he had announced an investment of $17.5 billion by 2030 to help build infrastructure and sovereign capabilities for the country's AI-first future, marking the third major AI-driven investment in the country in the past two months.
Microsoft's India South Central cloud region, based in Hyderabad, is scheduled to go live in mid-2026.
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"We are really excited about the investment we made. I had a chance to meet Prime Minister Modi yesterday (Tuesday) and discussed our excitement about it (investments)," the Microsoft CEO said.
Meanwhile, as India gears up to implement the Digital Personal Data Protection regime, Microsoft is introducing sovereign public cloud and sovereign private cloud for Indian customers.
Aims at doubling data centre capacity
Earlier, in his annual letter to stakeholders, Nadella had highlighted the company’s record fiscal year 2025 and its positioning at the centre of a major technological shift. Nadella informed investors that Microsoft intends to double its data centre capacity within the next two years.
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Emphasising the significance of AI facilities, Nadella wrote that Microsoft now finds itself in “a generational moment in technology,” noting the company’s approach to “think in decades but execute in quarters.”
The firm has launched new data centres across six continents and now operates more than 400 sites in 70 regions, adding over two gigawatts of capacity in fiscal 2025. The Wall Street Journal reported Nadella’s statement that Microsoft aims to “boost its AI capacity by more than 80 per cent this year.”
Partnership with OpenAI
Microsoft’s expansion is closely linked to its long-running partnership with OpenAI, which Nadella described as among the industry’s most successful, even as OpenAI broadened its cloud providers. Despite strong financial results, Microsoft’s stock had declined four per cent following reports of higher AI-related spending.
The company’s broader strategy mirrors efforts by Google and Amazon as competition intensifies for cloud space and computing power, underscoring the central role of data centres in meeting accelerating AI adoption.
(With agency inputs)