Tata Communications Plans Up To $450 Mn Investment In AI Network

• 27 Oct 2026
• TM Team
• 0 Comments

Tata Communications plans to invest USD 400-450 million to build a 10,000-km fibre network connecting India’s major data centre clusters and artificial intelligence hubs, as the company seeks to capitalise on rising demand for high-capacity connectivity to support AI workloads.

The proposed investment will establish an AI-focused connectivity network across key domestic markets, with the infrastructure designed to provide high bandwidth, low latency and resilience for hyperscalers, AI platforms, emerging cloud providers and large enterprises.

The first phase will focus on the Mumbai-Pune-Hyderabad-Chennai corridor, followed by expansion into eastern coastal and western India markets, including Visakhapatnam, Bhubaneswar, Jamnagar and GIFT City, Tata Communications said in a statement on Monday.

The network will be integrated with the company’s global connectivity backbone, linking Indian data centre clusters with international cable landing stations and major overseas AI infrastructure hubs.

Tata Communications Managing Director and Chief Executive Officer Ganesh Lakshminarayanan said the India data centre-to-data centre connectivity market could exceed USD 1 billion over the medium term.

The planned investment builds on the company’s existing network infrastructure, with an increasing share of its expansion being driven by anchor-customer commitments and contracted demand, Lakshminarayanan said.

The company did not provide a timeline for completing the proposed network expansion.

The data centre industry in India is attracting investment as cloud adoption accelerates, enterprises deploy AI applications and demand grows for local data storage and processing. While access to computing capacity and reliable power remains central to AI infrastructure development, the ability to move large volumes of data quickly between facilities is becoming increasingly important.

Tata Communications said its proposed network would cater to hyperscale cloud operators, AI companies, global capability centres, digital businesses and multinational enterprises expanding their operations in India.

Rupesh Chokshi, Executive Vice-President and Global Business Head for Network Services at Tata Communications, said AI infrastructure required connectivity capable of supporting high-capacity data transfers with low latency and resilience.

Alongside the new network, the company plans to expand its existing national long-distance and metropolitan connectivity infrastructure to meet demand from enterprise customers and data centre operators.

Tata Communications operates more than 5,00,000 km of subsea optical fibre and over 2,00,000 km of terrestrial fibre, according to the company.

In June 2026, it announced plans for a new subsea cable system connecting Mumbai and Singapore and participated as a consortium member in another cable project linking Chennai and Singapore, which is expected to be ready for service in the fourth quarter of 2029.

The company also integrated its TGN IA2 submarine cable in 2025 to improve network redundancy, latency and connectivity across Asia.

The latest investment plan expands its focus on domestic infrastructure connecting AI and data centre clusters, while leveraging its international network to serve customers operating across multiple markets.