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The India-America Connect Initiative will deliver new subsea cable routes to increase AI connectivity between India and the US and other locations in the southern hemisphere.
Google CEO Sundar Pichai meets Prime Minister Narendra Modi.
Google CEO Sundar Pichai on Wednesday announced the India-America Connect Initiative, which will deliver new subsea cable routes to increase AI connectivity between India and the US and other locations in the southern hemisphere.
“Today, we are announcing the India-America Connect Initiative, which will deliver new sub-sea cable routes to increase AI connectivity between India and the US and multiple locations across the southern hemisphere. For the opportunities this initiative creates, we should also invest in skilling, which is why we are announcing our most ambitious skilling programs here. This includes a new Google AI Professional Certificate program to master AI in their work,” CEO Sundar Pichai said at a Google event in New Delhi.
#WATCH | Delhi | At a Google event, CEO Sundar Pichai says, “Today, we are announcing the India-America Connect Initiative, which will deliver new sub-sea cable routes to increase AI connectivity between India and the US and multiple locations across the southern hemisphere. For… pic.twitter.com/JhAdnsh58r— ANI (@ANI) February 18, 2026
He also said India is poised for an “extraordinary trajectory” in artificial intelligence and emphasised the company’s commitment to partnering in the country’s AI transformation.
“AI is the biggest platform shift of our lifetime,” Pichai said, highlighting its potential to address challenges at scale, from improving healthcare diagnostics to supporting farmers with real-time alerts.
He noted that India’s diversity, language ecosystem, and robust digital public infrastructure make it a “powerful foundation for innovation” and a blueprint for democratizing AI globally.
Pichai underscored that AI adoption must prioritise trust, safety, and inclusivity. “AI must work across languages and local contexts. It must deliver real-world benefits people can rely on. Trust grows when technology is transparent, responsible, and grounded in outcomes,” he said.
What Is India-America Connect Initiative?
The India-America Connect initiative is a global digital infrastructure programme announced by Google to expand high-capacity connectivity between India, the United States, and multiple regions across Africa, Asia-Pacific, and the Southern Hemisphere. Anchored by Google’s planned $15 billion investment in AI infrastructure in India over five years, the initiative aims to strengthen network reach, reliability, and resilience through new subsea cables, fibre-optic routes, and international landing stations.
A key element is the creation of a new international subsea gateway in Visakhapatnam, along with multiple subsea links connecting India to Singapore, South Africa, and Australia, plus strategic terrestrial fibre routes linking the US and India.
The project is designed to position India as a major global connectivity hub while reducing dependence on existing cable landing points such as Mumbai and Chennai.
“In collaboration with local partners, America-India Connect will establish a new international subsea gateway in Visakhapatnam (Vizag); three new subsea paths connecting India to Singapore, South Africa, and Australia; and four strategic fiber-optic routes that bolster network resilience and capacity between the United States, India, and multiple locations across the Southern Hemisphere,” Brian Quigley, VP, Global Network Infrastructure, Google Cloud, said in a blogpost.
He added that the company is developing a direct fiber-optic path between Vizag and Chennai on India’s east coast to South Africa. When combined with the Equiano and Nuvem subsea cable systems, this will create a redundant high-capacity route that connects the American east coast around Africa to Vizag.
Additionally, we are delivering a direct path between Vizag and Singapore. When combined with the Bosun and Tabua subsea cable systems, this will create a South Pacific route that connects the American west coast through Australia to Vizag.
“These investments will establish Vizag as a major international subsea gateway, adding vital diversity from existing landings in Mumbai and Chennai. For a nation of more than 1 billion people, this will increase the resilience of India’s digital backbone and improve economic security,” Quigley stated.
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February 18, 2026, 16:39 IST
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