The Chatterjee Group (TCG) has announced its entry into the data centre market through Cortex DC, an AI-focused infrastructure business planning to develop 2 GW of data centre capacity across India. The company aims to have its first facility operationally ready within 18 months of construction commencing, with 51% of its energy planned to come from green sources.
Cortex DC is targeting hyperscalers, cloud service providers and enterprises running advanced AI workloads, as demand for high-performance computing infrastructure grows alongside AI adoption and cloud expansion.
The company said preparations covering sites, power and partnerships have progressed over recent months. Its development strategy centres on speed of delivery, large-scale capacity and sustainable power, with the aim of building infrastructure capable of supporting demanding compute workloads.
The venture draws on TCG’s experience in engineering, energy, technology and large-scale project execution. The group sees data centre infrastructure as a strategic investment as computing becomes increasingly central to economic growth, technological innovation and scientific research.
Dr Purnendu Chatterjee, founder and chairman of TCG, said the business extends the group’s long-term investment approach into digital infrastructure.
“The Industrial Age rested on steel and energy; the Intelligence Age will rest on compute,” Chatterjee said. He added that Cortex DC would focus on rapid development, scale and responsible energy use as India builds the infrastructure needed for its next phase of economic development.
Focus on hyperscale and AI workloads
Cortex DC aims to serve both Indian and international customers, with infrastructure designed around capacity, resilience, power availability and connectivity. Its planned 2 GW portfolio is intended to support the growing requirements of hyperscale computing, cloud services and AI applications.
Rahul Sharma, chief executive officer of Cortex DC, brings more than 25 years of experience across engineering, construction and digital infrastructure, including work with hyperscalers and colocation providers. The company said he has been involved, directly or indirectly, in gigawatt-scale data centre projects across India.
“Cortex DC is being built in India for the globe, set up to serve both local and global customers,” Sharma said. He added that the company aims to provide globally competitive, AI-ready infrastructure and position India as a destination for high-performance computing workloads.
The company’s plans come as data centre developers face growing requirements around power supply, connectivity and the ability to bring capacity online quickly. Cortex DC has identified an 18-month operational readiness target for its first facility, measured from the start of construction, although it has not disclosed the facility’s location, individual capacity or expected investment.
Energy strategy and infrastructure development
Cortex DC plans to source 51% of its energy from green sources, incorporating renewable power into its infrastructure strategy from the outset. The company has not yet detailed the mix of renewable energy sources or the arrangements through which the target will be achieved.
Vinayak Pai, chair of the Cortex DC board, said infrastructure investment would be central to India’s ability to capture the economic opportunities associated with AI.
“AI is the next such layer, and India has the talent, the market and the ambition to lead it,” Pai said. He added that Cortex DC aims to bring global engineering and governance standards to infrastructure supporting the country’s digital economy.
The supervisory board includes senior TCG leaders Samik Mukherjee, Jeremy Ghose, Debu Bhattacharya and Sujoy Choudhury, whose expertise spans energy, finance, strategy, technology and industrial development.
Potential economic impact
Beyond computing capacity, Cortex DC expects its projects to generate direct and indirect employment across construction, engineering, supply chains, facility operations and related services.
The company views its planned investment as part of the broader infrastructure ecosystem required to support India’s digital economy and attract international technology businesses. However, the scale and timing of these economic benefits will depend on project execution and the pace at which capacity is developed and commissioned.
With a target of 2 GW across India, Cortex DC is positioning itself to participate in the expansion of AI and cloud infrastructure. Its ability to meet the first facility’s delivery timeline, secure the required power and develop capacity at scale will be key to translating its plans into operational infrastructure.