Meta partners with Reliance for built-to-suit AI data center in India

Reliance Industries has inked a pact to lease its first dedicated, built-to-suit AI-enabled data center in India to Meta, as per an exchange filing. Located in Reliance’s mega campus in Jamnagar, Gujarat, the facility will debut with a 168 MW capacity with options to scale further.

“Building India’s first built-to-suit data center for a global technology leader of Meta’s scale demonstrates India’s readiness to be at the forefront of the global AI revolution,” Reliance Chairman Mukesh Ambani said. The data center will be supported by clean energy and utilize desalinated seawater for cooling. It bolsters the Indian conglomerate’s ambitions to become a primary provider of AI and cloud infrastructure in one of the world's fastest-growing tech markets.

Why it matters: Meta has been a long-term investor in Reliance’s digital ecosystem since its USD 5.7 bn investment in Jio Platforms in 2020. In 2024, the two formed a JV to develop AI tools and enterprise platforms using Meta’s Llama model, backed by an INR 8.6 bn (USD 89.7 mn) pledge. India’s data-center market is projected to nearly double to USD 13.1 bn by 2034. The pact lends Meta the physical infrastructure — power grid access and industrial cooling — which remain the primary constraint for regional AI scaling.

Where have we seen this before? The GCC holds heft in executing similar cross-border tech alliances. Microsoft’s USD 1.5 bn investment in Abu Dhabi’s AI heavyweight, G42, gave it a minority stake, a board seat, and G42 moved its entire core data platform onto Microsoft Azure. Microsoft gained a highly connected regional anchor to deploy advanced AI across the Middle East, Central Asia, and Africa. Similarly, Google Cloud partnered directly with Saudi Arabia’s Public Investment Fund (PIF) to construct an AI hub near Dammam.

What’s next: The Meta-Reliance ties could serve as a template for future India-GCC digital infrastructure partnerships, where access to land, power, and capital increasingly determines AI scale. Meta’s local data-center footprint is also likely to improve uptake of its Llama models among Indian enterprises, increasing pressure on rival cloud and AI providers.

Jio BlackRock gears up for India ETF debut

Jio BlackRock Asset Management is gearing up to launch its first exchange-traded funds (ETFs) in India by August, Reuters reports, citing the CEO of Jio BlackRock Sid Swaminathan. The firm is looking to establish an early foothold in the country’s rapidly expanding but underpenetrated passive investment landscape.

The backstory: A heavyweight alliance between Reliance’s Jio Financial Services and global titan BlackRock, the entity has already amassed roughly INR 180 bn (USD 1.9 bn) in assets under management (AUM) within its first year of operation. Its initial ETF offerings will focus on equity markets. Rising retail participation and product innovation could accelerate ETF adoption in India over the long term, Swaminathan said.

Why it matters: The move mirrors BlackRock’s global success in ETFs, with its iShares franchise managing USD 5.1 tn worldwide. In India, passive strategies remain an untapped frontier, accounting for just 18.5% of the mutual fund industry’s cumulative average AUM of INR 81.9 tn (USD 859 bn).

Expanding product suite: For specialized investment vehicles, the company will rely on a traditional network of human advisers and distributors rather than a purely digital interface. This high-touch distribution strategy arrives as a cooling domestic equity market prompts local investors to actively hunt for global safe havens. Driven by persistent foreign portfolio investor outflows, India’s benchmark Nifty 50 index has retreated 11.1% so far in 2026.