BENGALURU: Large and Medium Industries Minister M B Patil, who is in Davos to participate in the World Economic Forum, on Tuesday said Sify Technologies is set to inaugurate a new data centre facility in Karnataka shortly, while Bharti Enterprises has expressed interest in setting up a data centre in the State. A State delegation comprising Deputy Chief Minister D K Shivakumar and Minister M B Patil held a series of high-level meetings with global corporations, technology firms and academic institutions, highlighting Karnataka’s execution capability, strong talent pool and investor-friendly ecosystem.
“Sify Technologies highlighted Karnataka’s central role in its growth journey. The company has made significant investments in data centres in Bengaluru and is set to inaugurate a new facility shortly. Discussions also covered the possibility of developing data centres in Tier-2 cities across Karnataka to promote balanced regional growth, leveraging improved connectivity, power availability and infrastructure,” Patil said.
The Minister said Rajan Bharti Mittal, Vice Chairman of Bharti Enterprises, noted that the diversified conglomerate has already made cumulative investments of around Rs 13,000 crore in Karnataka. He added that Mittal expressed interest in setting up a data centre in the State, with discussions focusing on land availability, water requirements and supporting infrastructure.
Patil said talks were also held with Mistral AI, a fast-growing French AI company, on establishing a Global Capability Centre or R&D facility in Bengaluru through a phased approach, starting with engineering teams and later expanding into advanced research.
The delegation also met Jacob Aarup-Andersen, Chief Executive Officer of Carlsberg Group. “Carlsberg informed that it is implementing an investment of around Rs 350 crore towards bottling capacity in Karnataka, as committed during GIM 2025, and indicated plans for further expansion,” Patil said, adding that the company expressed satisfaction with its operations in the State.
PayPal Holdings Inc. highlighted Karnataka’s importance in its global operations, employing over 4,000 regular and 1,500 contractual staff in the State. The company expressed interest in collaborating with the government on AI-focused reskilling and upskilling programmes and in supporting startups through seed funding, Patil said.
The high-level delegation includes S Selvakumar, Principal Secretary, and Gunjan Krishna, Commissioner, Department of Industries, among others.