Andhra Pradesh IT Minister Nara Lokesh on Tuesday said Visakhapatnam is set to transform from a traditional “Steel City” into a global “Data City.” He made the remarks during the foundation-laying ceremony of a Google Cloud AI Hub at Tarluvada village.
The project was inaugurated by Chief Minister N. Chandrababu Naidu and Union Minister Ashwini Vaishnaw, in the presence of Google’s Global Infrastructure Vice President Bikash Koley. The initiative is being developed in partnership with AdaniConneX and Airtel Nxtra.
With an estimated investment of $15 billion (around ₹1.35 lakh crore), the project is among the largest foreign direct investments in India. Spread across 600 acres in Tarluvada, Rambilli, and Adavivaram, it will host a 1-gigawatt hyperscale AI data center.
Lokesh described the project as a “golden chapter” in the city’s history, noting it would bring global recognition and create employment in sectors like cybersecurity, cloud computing, and engineering. He said Andhra Pradesh is attracting significant investments due to improved governance and policy support.
He added that the initiative aligns with the government’s goal of generating 2 million jobs and building Visakhapatnam into a trillion-dollar economic zone, marking a new era of technological and industrial growth.
