HCLTech to Invest 14,257 Cr. in Odisha for Its First AI Data Centre
HCLTech, a global technology company, has announced an investment of Rs. 14,257 crore to establish its first AI Data Centre in Odisha. The facility will be developed at the Odisha Sovereign AI Park, an upcoming purpose-built innovation campus in Bhubaneswar.
HCLTech Partners with Sarvam AI and Odisha Government
According to HCLTech’s official press release dated 24th July 2026, the AI Data Centre will be developed in partnership with Sarvam AI, a Bengaluru-based artificial intelligence company, and the Government of Odisha. The partners have signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with the Odisha Government to facilitate the project’s development.
The data centre is expected to commence operations by 2028 and is projected to generate around 5,000 employment opportunities.
Commenting on the development, Mr C. Vijayakumar, CEO & Managing Director, HCLTech, said: “This is an important milestone in our full-stack AI play and will enable us to serve the large demand for sovereign AI solutions and unlock the scale of our strategic partnership with Sarvam”.
Sharing his views on the collaboration, Mr Pratyush Kumar, Co-Founder, Sarvam AI, said, “The Odisha Sovereign AI Park will connect high-performance compute with Indian models and real-world applications. Together with HCLTech, we are excited to bring Sarvam’s full-stack AI capabilities to enterprises and public systems at scale”.
Rising Data Generation Drives Expansion of Domestic Data Centres
The project comes at a time when India is witnessing a rapid rise in data generation and AI adoption, increasing the need for domestic data centre infrastructure.
According to a report published by Press Insider on 30th January 2026, India generates nearly 20% of the world’s data but hosts only around 3% of the global data centre capacity, highlighting a significant gap between data generation and local hosting capabilities.
India’s AI-driven digital transformation is also expected to accelerate investments in data centre infrastructure. The country’s operational data centre capacity is projected to increase from 2.2 GW in 2025 to 12 GW by 2030, driven by the growing demand for AI computing, cloud services, and digital applications.
