With global technology companies continuously making large-scale investments in artificial intelligence (AI) in India, the country, previously rated as lagging in the AI competition, is rapidly emerging as a major new AI powerhouse.
According to a report by CNBC on December 11, 2025, India received a total of over $50 billion (approximately 73.7 trillion won) in AI-related investment commitments from Microsoft (MS) and Amazon in just one day. Microsoft announced on the 9th that it would invest $17.5 billion over the next four years to expand AI infrastructure in India, introduce services, and train talent. Subsequently, Amazon also stated that it would invest $35 billion in the Indian AI industry, which is an additional large-scale investment on top of the original $40 billion.
The continuous investments from these foreign large technology companies can be interpreted not simply as corporate actions, but as strategic judgments that view India as an attractive AI market. Currently, in the Asian region, major countries like Japan, China, and Singapore have reached saturation in data centers and face challenges in acquiring construction land, whereas India possesses favorable conditions in terms of vast land, low electricity costs, and a continuously growing supply of renewable energy for industrial infrastructure. Additionally, benefiting from the explosive growth of e-commerce and consumption demands based on social media, India is considered capable of maintaining a stable operational rate for data centers.
According to market research firm IDC, India is classified as the fastest-growing country in the AI market in the Asia-Pacific region. Particularly in terms of infrastructure and human resources, India shows distinct differences compared to other countries. Although India is less competitive than the United States or China in the development of basic AI models, it has outstanding capabilities in implementing and applying AI applications based on the needs of enterprises and industries, thanks to the solid foundation laid by its long-standing information technology (IT) services industry.
The large domestic demand market composed of approximately 1.4 billion people is also a factor that cannot be overlooked. AI services have the characteristic of improving performance as user data accumulates. With a dense and large user base, India also holds high value as a testing ground for new technologies; currently, global tech companies like OpenAI, Google, and Perplexity are providing their AI tools to local users for free. In fact, according to the 'Global AI Vibrancy Ranking' published by Stanford University in the United States, India has ranked third after the United States and China.
This trend indicates that India may rise as a new center of the global AI market in the future. Although it is unlikely to reach the technological development level of developed countries in the short term, it is expected that India will attempt to transition from a latecomer in the AI industry to a core player, based on high actual usage demand, excellent IT talent, and competitive infrastructure.
