Microsoft Unveils Largest India Cloud Region in Hyderabad with $20.5 Billion Commitment

Microsoft has expanded its cloud presence in India by launching its largest data center region in Hyderabad. The new region, known as the India South Central cloud region, is part of Microsoft's $20.5 billion commitment to the country's cloud and AI development. This brings the total number of owned Microsoft cloud regions in India to four, with existing sites in Pune, Chennai, and Mumbai.

The Hyderabad region has been designed with three Availability Zones, which provide regulated customers with in-country failover capabilities and sovereign-ready controls aligned with Indian data governance expectations. The region also uses air-cooled chillers that consume zero water for cooling, a move seen as a response to environmental concerns surrounding the expansion of hyperscale data centers in India.

Early adopters of the new region include HDFC Bank, Adani Group, Bajaj Finserv, and PB Pay. They cited benefits such as business continuity, cross-cloud resilience, and alignment with Indian regulatory requirements. However, Microsoft has left some details undisclosed, including which Azure AI services and GPU classes will be available in the region at general availability.