Airtel partners with Google Cloud to fast-track cloud and AI adoption in India

Bharti Airtel announced today it has entered into a long-term strategic partnership with Google Cloud to accelerate cloud adoption and the deployment of gen AI in India.

The partnership will offer a suite of cutting-edge cloud solutions from Google Cloud to fast-track cloud adoption and modernization for Airtel's customers. Airtel will provide a suite of cloud-managed services to its customer base of more than 2,000 large enterprises and one million emerging businesses.

This strategic partnership is expected to tap into the burgeoning Indian public cloud services market, which is projected to grow to $17.8 billion by 2027 (IDC data).

Commenting on this development, Gopal Vittal, MD & CEO, Bharti Airtel, said, "As India accelerates its digital transformation, cutting-edge cloud and AI solutions will be at the heart and center of this change. We are happy to partner with Google Cloud and jointly address this market opportunity with secure and scalable Cloud solutions for government, enterprises, and emerging businesses. Together, we will also accelerate the deployment of gen AI in the country and unlock its potential to solve problems."

By combining their unique strengths of connectivity and AI technology, Airtel and Google Cloud will develop industry-leading AI/ML solutions that the Indian telco will train on its large data set. These unique solutions will include:

• geospatial analytics solutions with advanced location intelligence for trend-spotting, predictive capabilities, market assessment, site selection, risk management, and asset tracking
• voice analytics solutions for superior conversational applications trained across languages
• marketing technology solutions to forecast consumer behavior, perform tailored audience segmentations, and streamline content creation with high-precision contextual ads at reduced costs.

Airtel has developed an end-to-end IoT solution specifically for the utility sector, integrating connectivity, Google Cloud services, and application software to facilitate quick and easy deployment.

The company has also established a dedicated managed services center in Pune, staffed by over 300 specialists who are being trained to excel in Google Cloud services and to develop sophisticated technological solutions.

Furthermore, by leveraging Google Cloud's generative AI capabilities, Airtel plans to transform customer experiences and interactions across its service offerings of mobile, broadband, and digital TV services whilst streamlining its internal processes and operations.

"Our strategic collaboration with Airtel marks a significant milestone towards our commitment to accelerate cloud and AI adoption in India. Through this partnership, we aim to explore and build transformative solutions that can enhance Airtel's customer experiences," stated Thomas Kurian, CEO, Google Cloud.