AI continues to drive transformation across the data centre industry, expanding capacity and changing operations. The technology is boosting rack density and automating infrastructure monitoring, in addition to optimising high-density cooling.

For Ashish Arora, CEO at Nxtra by Airtel, as demand for AI-ready capacity rises, the scale of change for the industry is enormous. He told Capacity that the company – which is Airtel’s data centre arm – is poised to act.

“We’re leading this transformation on three fronts. First, through our deep collaboration with global hyperscalers, we are co-creating AI-ready infrastructure to support large-scale cloud and edge deployments,” he said.

“We are embedding AI readiness into the design of our new data centres – introducing high-density configurations, liquid cooling technologies and scalable architectures purpose-built for AI workloads.”

How Nxtra is prioritising data centre growth

Nxtra is already leveraging AI throughout its operations by using intelligent automation, real-time monitoring and predictive analytics.

“This is to enhance uptime, reduce energy use and optimise resource allocation,” Arora added. “Together, these initiatives enable Nxtra to deliver data centres that are not just built for today’s digital ecosystem, but ready to power the AI-driven economy of tomorrow.”

More broadly, the company has strategically positioned itself to capture data centre growth by building future-proof infrastructure that delivers resilience and sustainability, Arora said. Currently, the organisation has 14 hyperscale campuses and more than 120 edge facilities across India.

“We plan to invest 5,000 crore (US$560 million) to double our data centre capacity to 400MW by 2027,” he explained.

Part of these plans includes a strategic partnership between Airtel, its parent company, and Google to establish a purpose-built AI hub and data centre in Visakhapatnam to confront high-density workloads and global ecosystem demand.

Arora added: “Through these investments and partnerships, we’re ready to support India’s next-wave of digital growth – from sovereign cloud deployments to generative AI (Gen AI) infrastructure, for domestic and global customers alike.”

Nxtra credits operating multiple data centres and developing machine learning algorithms to predict over-utilisation or under-utilisation of power and cooling systems.

“This has helped to streamline our operations to ensure there is optimum utilisation of resources and prevent any adverse scenarios,” Arora said. “AI and machine learning are not just transforming industries but are also revolutionising how data centres operate. At Nxtra, AI-driven cooling systems are already making waves by significantly reducing energy consumption and optimising thermal management in real-time.”

He added: “This is particularly important as data centres face increasing demand from data-intensive applications for AI model training, IoT automation and content-streaming.”

Optimising data centres with ‘hybrid’ cooling

According to Arora, a hybrid cooling strategy is one that uses both liquid and air-cooling methods.

With data centres requiring more power to support GPUs and hyperscale cloud infrastructure, he said cutting-edge cooling technologies like direct liquid cooling (DLC) and immersion cooling alongside HVAC systems can “enable a hosting environment for both hyperscale and highly flexible IT systems as well as traditional legacy IT architectures”.

He added: “There is also an impact on sustainability if all data centres start consuming too much water to facilitate only liquid-based cooling infrastructure. Hence a more mature approach would be to adopt a mix of cooling strategies based on the type of IT architecture required and the applications it supports.”

To address cooling challenges – and balance customer demand for high-density AI workloads with sustainability commitments – Nxtra is designing its new campuses with these hybrid cooling capabilities to manage high-density Gen AI workloads.

“Sustainability remains central to our build and design philosophy. Every new Nxtra data centre is green from day one, leveraging renewable energy and energy-efficient systems to minimise environmental impact,” Arora explained.

The company is also committed to achieving net zero emissions by 2031, which is supported by initiatives like deploying hydrogen-ready fuel cells, expanding solar and wind integration and adhering to RE100 commitments.

“Today, 49% of total electricity consumption in our core data centres is already through renewable energy,” Arora added. “By combining advanced cooling with clean energy innovation, Nxtra is ensuring that India’s next generation of AI-ready data centres are both high-performing and sustainable.”

Prioritising infrastructure partnerships for success

Nxtra has built a strong renewable energy ecosystem through its strategic partnerships with green energy providers. Already, the company has partnered with Continuum Green Energy, Vibrant Energy, AmpIn Energy Transition and Amplus Energy.

These important collaborations for the company have helped Nxtra secure more than 482,800MWh of renewable energy capacity.

“This has enabled a substantial portion of [our] core data centres to be powered by clean energy sources,” Arora said. “Nxtra is committed to meeting over 70% of its power requirements through renewable energy in the coming years.”

To achieve its net zero goals, the company is expanding its renewable energy procurement through solar wind hybrid projects and cutting-edge technologies like hydrogen-ready fuel cells.

Arora added: “[We] are investing in energy efficient infrastructure and advanced cooling solutions to optimise Power Usage Effectiveness (PUE) while maintaining the highest reliability standards across its expanding data centre footprint.”

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