OpenAI, TCS Explore India AI Compute Partnership: Report
The talks center on a 500 MW data center lease and a tech-transfer pact that could anchor OpenAI’s models and agentic AI offerings directly in India.
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[Image source: Chetan Jha/MITSMR India]
ChatGPT developer OpenAI is in talks with Tata Consultancy Services Ltd (TCS) to build dedicated AI compute capacity in India, in what could be one of the US firm’s most ambitious bets on the country’s tech ecosystem, The Economic Times reported, citing people in the know.
The discussions are part of OpenAI’s broader “Stargate” infrastructure push, aimed at deploying large-scale compute across multiple geographies. India has become a strategic market for the company, now ranking as its second-largest base for ChatGPT usage after the US.
A key element of the talks is a data center arrangement tied to HyperVault, a new infrastructure venture backed by TCS and private equity firm TPG.
OpenAI is said to be close to finalizing a lease for at least 500 megawatts of capacity, which would allow its models to run locally in India rather than relying solely on overseas deployment.
If sealed, OpenAI would be HyperVault’s first anchor tenant.
Both sides are also exploring ways to co-develop agentic AI solutions for Indian enterprises, an area where demand is rising quickly as companies push to automate operations and redesign workflows around intelligent systems.
For TCS, a broad rollout of such agentic AI offerings could be a lucrative addition to its portfolio. For OpenAI, it represents a strategic route to enterprise-scale adoption in one of the world’s fastest-growing digital economies.
Despite the scale of the proposed arrangement, OpenAI may not take equity in HyperVault, the ET report said, adding that the Tata group wants to avoid dilution and maintain neutrality so the platform can attract a wider set of global AI clients, including competitors such as Anthropic.
The talks with TCS come after earlier negotiations between OpenAI and Reliance Industries Ltd failed to materialize. Reliance has since strengthened its partnerships with Google and Meta, sharpening the contest among large technology players vying to build foundational AI infrastructure in India.
The timing is critical for OpenAI, which has reportedly declared an internal “code red” following Google’s release of Gemini 3.0. As competition intensifies, securing large-scale infrastructure and expanding global deployment options have moved to the top of OpenAI’s agenda.
