Google chucks more money at India

Less than a year after its last major commitment to the country, internet giant Google has announced it will invest a further $10 billion in over the next few years.

At its (virtual) Google For India event, CEO Sundar Pichai spoke at length about what a big deal India is to him, what with him growing up there and everything. He eventually cut to the chase, saying: “Today, I’m excited to announce the Google for India Digitization Fund. Through this effort, we will invest ₹75,000 crore, or approximately $10 billion, into India over the next 5-7 years. We’ll do this through a mix of equity investments, partnerships, and operational, infrastructure and ecosystem investments.”

Here’s how it will break down:

Pichai plugged the Indian PM’s cunning plan to digitize India repeatedly, so this move seems to have a political element. It also coincides with growing animosity between India and China, including the banning of a bunch of Chinese apps in India, so this move could be interpreted as Google picking a team in that region. You can judge for yourself from the full presentation below.