TCS has inked a pact with OpenAI to build AI data centers in India and is exploring additional partnerships with other tech firms to jointly develop AI data centers, with announced investments spanning 100 MW to 1 GW facilities discussed at the India AI Impact Summit.

The OpenAI deal envisions data centers ranging from 100 MW to 1 GW, with a 1 GW facility projected to cost about $1 billion in infrastructure, financed via debt and matched by a partner (TPG), leading to an overall projected infrastructure spend of $7–8 billion.

TCS CEO K Krithivasan is optimistic about expanding the company’s AI data center footprint, highlighting advanced discussions with multiple hyperscalers and building on the OpenAI partnership.

TCS faced a challenging year with roughly a 20% drop in its share price and a 23% decline since Krithivasan’s 2023 appointment as clients cut budgets and redirected investments toward AI.

TCS sees AI as an extension of advisory services, leveraging capabilities in infrastructure, model training, agents, and application intelligence, while not expecting large language models from firms like Anthropic or Alphabet to fully replace corporate IT operations.

Krithivasan says latent demand for AI infrastructure will emerge by 2030, with AI-driven spend shaping client budgets and steering TCS’s strategy beyond traditional IT services.

TCS aims to expand beyond data centers into model training, AI agents, and broader AI applications, using partnerships and in-house innovation to attract enterprise clients.

With about 600,000 employees, TCS expanded hiring to 85,000 in 2025 and plans to sustain momentum, including 20,000 offers already extended for 2026, signaling a push for creative and business-oriented talent.

TCS aims to be a full-stack AI solutions provider, offering infrastructure to AI agents and application intelligence, positioning itself as a one-stop shop for customers.

The London innovation hub accelerates AI prototyping and real-world applications, including projects like a digital twin heart model from athlete data to simulate training outcomes.

At the London hub, TCS engages clients to explore AI use cases, showcasing initiatives such as Lovable for rapid prototyping and the digital twin heart project tied to the London Marathon sponsorship.

India faces a sizable AI infrastructure gap, with an estimated need for about 10 GW of data center capacity by 2030, while only 5–6 GW of projects have been publicly announced, signaling substantial upcoming investment opportunities.