Google subsea cables to link India-US, Govt bodies to get frontier AI

Google will build new subsea cable routes between India, United States and other locations to increase AI connectivity, Alphabet CEO Sundar Pichai said Wednesday. This will build on the company’s $15 billion AI data centre investment in Andhra Pradesh the company had announced last year. The company’s research arm, Google DeepMind, will also partner with various Indian government institutions to offer them its frontier AI models. Called the ‘America-India Connect’ initiative, the project will establish a new international subsea gateway in Visakhapatnam; three new subsea paths connecting India to Singapore, South Africa and Australia; and four strategic fiber-optic routes to boost network connectivity between the US, India and multiple locations across the Southern Hemisphere. This builds on Google’s ongoing subsea cable projects across the Pacific and Africa, it said in a press release. Pichai is in Delhi to attend the ongoing India-AI Impact Summit where he is expected to deliver a keynote address. “I believe India is going to have an extraordinary trajectory with AI, and we want to be a part of it,” he said in a media briefing. “For countries like India, AI presents a chance to leapfrog age-old gaps and create new opportunities. These also happen to be the places where we see the greatest adoption and optimism for AI technologies, which I don’t think is a coincidence,” he said. He was present at the briefing along with Demis Hassabis, CEO of Google DeepMind. Last October, Google had announced it will invest $15 billion over five years to set up an AI data centre in Andhra Pradesh, in what would be its biggest investment yet in the country. The tech giant has partnered with the Adani Group and Airtel to build the infrastructure for the project, which also includes the construction of a new international subsea gateway. Pichai also announced that Google DeepMind, the company’s AI research arm, will partner with Indian government bodies and local institutions on frontier AI capabilities. In a press release, Google said the company will partner with the Anusandhan National Research Foundation (ANRF) to facilitate the adoption of AI models to advance science. “We’re providing access to our frontier AI for Science models, including AlphaGenome, AI Co-scientist and Earth AI,” it said. It also announced a partnership with Niti Aayog’s Atal Tinkering Labs to incorporate robotics and coding into local curricula, integrate Gemini into teacher workflows, and build a “safely guardrailed AI assistant for students”. “In the global AI transformation, India is showing exceptional leadership in applying the technology to tackle its own biggest challenges. But India is going even further, playing a critical international role by convening this week the fourth global AI summit of governments, companies and civil society. International dialogue and collaboration will guide positive impacts and create the global frameworks required to prepare society for a future with AI,” Google DeepMind said in a statement. Google announced the $30-million Google.org Impact Challenge: AI for Science, an open call for researchers, nonprofits, and social enterprises in India, and around the world, using AI to achieve scientific breakthroughs. Selected awardees will also be able to participate in a Google.org Accelerator, receiving engineering support, mentorship, and infrastructure from Google DeepMind and Google Research to turn their concepts into scalable discoveries. Soumyarendra Barik is a Special Correspondent with The Indian Express, specializing in the complex and evolving intersection of technology, policy, and society. With over five years of newsroom experience, he is a key voice in documenting how digital transformations impact the daily lives of Indian citizens. Expertise & Focus Areas Barik’s reporting delves into the regulatory and human aspects of the tech world. His core areas of focus include: The Gig Economy: He extensively covers the rights and working conditions of gig workers in India. Tech Policy & Regulation: Analysis of policy interventions that impact Big Tech companies and the broader digital ecosystem. Digital Rights: Reporting on data privacy, internet freedom, and India's prevalent digital divide. Authoritativeness & On-Ground Reporting: Barik is known for his immersive and data-driven approach to journalism. A notable example of his commitment to authentic storytelling involves him tailing a food delivery worker for over 12 hours. This investigative piece quantified the meager earnings and physical toll involved in the profession, providing a verified, ground-level perspective often missing in tech reporting. Personal Interests Outside of the newsroom, Soumyarendra is a self-confessed nerd about horology (watches), follows Formula 1 racing closely, and is an avid football fan. Find all stories by Soumyarendra Barik here. ... Read More