Canadian pension giant joins race to fund India's AI-fueled data center boom
The Canadian pension giant will acquire an 8. 2% stake in CtrlS, a tech giant that operates more than 15 data centers across India. As global investors race to fund the infrastructure underpinning the artificial-intelligence boom, Canada Pension Plan Investment Board's CPP Investments has committed up to ₹70 billion (about $741 million) to Indian data center operator CtrlS, betting on India's growing role in the global buildout of cloud and AI infrastructure.
Key Takeaways
- Under the partnership announced on Wednesday, CPP Investments will invest ₹40 billion (around $423 million) to acquire an 8.
2% stake in CtrlS and commit up to ₹30 billion (about $317 million) to a joint venture to develop hyperscale data center campuses across India.
- India has become a major destination for data center and AI investments as global technology companies and investors ramp up spending to meet surging computing demand.
Companies including Amazon , Google , Microsoft , OpenAI , and Uber have announced investments in the country in recent months, while operators are rapidly expanding capacity amid a broader global race to build AI infrastructure.
- The pension fund said it has invested in the data center sector since 2017 and has built a portfolio of assets and joint ventures across major markets worldwide.
The partnership will help CtrlS expand capacity and build infrastructure tailored for AI workloads, said CtrlS founder and chief executive Sridhar Pinnapureddy.
- New Delhi has sought to position India as a global hub for digital infrastructure through a range of policy measures, including tax exemptions for foreign cloud providers on services sold overseas through 2047, provided those workloads are run from data centers located in the country.
Indian conglomerates have also accelerated expansion plans to capitalize on the opportunity.
- The rapid buildout of data centers is also expected to increase pressure on electricity and water resources, highlighting some of the challenges that could accompany India's ambitions to become a major AI infrastructure hub.
Stats & Key Facts
- #2% stake in CtrlS, a tech giant that operates more than 15 data centers across India.
- #2% stake in CtrlS, a tech giant that operates more than 15 data centers across India.
- #As global investors race to fund the infrastructure underpinning the artificial-intelligence boom, Canada Pension Plan Investment Board's CPP Investments has committed up to ₹70 billion (about $741 million) to Indian data center operator CtrlS, betting on India's growing role in the global buildout of cloud and AI infrastructure.
- #Under the partnership announced on Wednesday, CPP Investments will invest ₹40 billion (around $423 million) to acquire an 8.
Under the partnership announced on Wednesday, CPP Investments will invest ₹40 billion (around $423 million) to acquire an 8. 2% stake in CtrlS and commit up to ₹30 billion (about $317 million) to a joint venture to develop hyperscale data center campuses across India. CPP Investments will own 48% of the joint venture, while CtrlS will hold the remaining 52%, the companies said in a joint statement.
Founded in 2007, CtrlS operates more than 15 data centers across India. The Hyderabad-based company has been expanding its footprint to meet rising demand from cloud providers, enterprises, and AI workloads. India has become a major destination for data center and AI investments as global technology companies and investors ramp up spending to meet surging computing demand.
Companies including Amazon , Google , Microsoft , OpenAI , and Uber have announced investments in the country in recent months, while operators are rapidly expanding capacity amid a broader global race to build AI infrastructure. "As one of the world's fastest-growing digital markets, India represents an important pillar of our global data center strategy," said CPP Investments' global head of real assets Max Biagosch in a statement. CPP Investments, Canada's largest pension investor, has been investing in India since 2009 and had net assets of about $20 billion in the country as of March 31, making it one of the largest foreign institutional investors in the market.
For more details please read the original article at TechCrunch AI.
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