AirTrunk Commits $21 Billion to India Data Centres

AirTrunk, the Australian data centre operator, announced on 1st June that it will invest $21 billion in India over the next decade, a capital outlay that ranks among the largest foreign investments in the country's digital infrastructure.

The bulk of the spending will go toward building hyperscale data centres in Mumbai, Chennai, and the National Capital Region, with the first facility expected to open in Mumbai by early 2028. AirTrunk founder and chief executive Robin Khuda said India's combination of a large digital economy, rising cloud adoption, and government-driven data localisation rules made it a natural next market after the company's expansion across Asia-Pacific.

India's data centre capacity has been expanding rapidly as more businesses shift operations online and as regulators tighten requirements that certain types of data remain stored within the country. The government has also been offering incentives to attract data centre investments, including granting infrastructure status to the sector in 2022, which eased access to cheaper financing.

AirTrunk currently operates facilities in Australia, Singapore, Hong Kong, Japan, and Malaysia. It was acquired in 2024 by a consortium led by Blackstone in a deal that valued the company at roughly $16 billion. The India commitment marks its most ambitious geographical bet since that acquisition.

The investment comes as global technology firms are pouring tens of billions of dollars into AI infrastructure, with much of the spending flowing toward data centres that can handle high-density computing workloads. AirTrunk's expansion positions it to compete with established Indian operators such as NTT and ST Telemedia, as well as with newer entrants like AdaniConneX.

Robin Khuda said the company would fund the rollout through a mix of debt and equity, and that it had already begun securing land in the targeted cities.