To wonder why Google is setting up a HUGE AI center in India and not in the UK?

[LadyGillingham]

https://www.reuters.com/world/india/google-invest-10-billion-data-centre-south-india-2025-10-14/

India has crazy salaries ! FAANG+ companies employ tens of thousands in India and pay them USD salaries. Why arent these companies investing in the UK? We are an English speaking nation, with world class universities.

A few things I can tell you from the rule book India’s IT industry played by and came out successful every time. They offered land for free to these companies and built infrastructure/connectivity around it. They gave these companies insane tax breaks. The companies, in return, created a lot of employment. Hotels, resultants, businesses boomed and govt started to get huge returns from taxes. They rinsed and repeated this in several cities. Result ? US like multi citi tech hubs creating employment and prosperity to people and Government alike.

It’s stupid to throw crazy taxes at corporations to fund illegals immigrants in hotels. Companies just move elsewhere. Result? What we have now. High unemployment, stupidly high taxes for the employed, rich moving away, companies moving away, tax deficits and then increase taxes again to fund shit initiatives, cut funding for NHS and Schools. Rinse and repeat, race to the bottom.

The answer to almost any question involving 'why' and business is money.

It will either cost them less or make them more money, or both.

These types of skills are a global market place, the UK just can't compete anymore. We put more and more burden on employers and then wonder why they choose to go elsewhere.

I am of Indian origin and visit Southern India frequently ( way more educated than the North) Every single young person in my extended family- man or woman-is studying engineering, mostly IT. It's almost a rite of passage. (Medicine used to be the profession of choice). Huge number of women engineers; they don't believe women can't do math!

I can't speak to the quality of their code, but man, they work hard.

It’s a good point re CT but I don’t think that’s the entire reason, water, workers and energy costs.

Cost

Energy costs are far higher in Britain than in India, AI is extremely energy hungry.

Based on what we pay the Indian developers compared to our UK and US developers, they are far cheaper.

@ChocolateCinderToffee I assumed @AhWeNoss was being sarcastic

Because it is much cheaper to employ people in India, than UK

Simple

We don’t have that kind of talent supply in the UK. Neither did India when they started.

People (skilled) would move to the UK from India in a heartbeat. Skilled immigration for 5-8 yrs until we train our own children to fill the gaps.

Nopes. youll be shocked if you research. FAANG+ pay US salaries in India

Don’t we want brown workers to stop coming over here and stealing our jobs?

So creating viable work in India means Google is helping the cause, this surely is cause for much celebration.

I’m glad we’re not carving up more green fields in the UK. Who needs another massive ugly building?!

Datacentres can’t get on the Grid in the UK - was in the press the other day, could be as long as (from memory) 7 years for the infrastructure to support the enormous power needed. The state of our water networks speaks for itself. Factor in Net-Zero targets and the UK becomes even less appealing.

Some people are definitely getting US or UK salaries. But the majority won't be, I guess. Including support and admin staff.

I might point out that Google CEO Sundar Picchai is a first gen Indian immigrant.
DS ran into him the other day in Tortilla! ( Really).

Like-for-like, labour costs for IT staff in India are much cheaper and they are more productive than here. Instead of a few headline salaries, you need to consider experience levels and other associated costs such as benefits and welfare. They will also accept “lesser” working conditions (within reasons) such as longer hours.

Oh also, most of my skilled family members in tech don't want to move to the UK. One I know turned down an offer from IBM.

Why would they? They have a better quality of life in India ( by their metrics).
They might have a decade ago, but now they are put off by high taxes, rents, and the state of the NHS plus every political party calling them scroungers and drains.

No, they really don't.

I seem to remember the Natwest did something quite similar during the 90s. They ended up bringing it back to the UK after all the complaints.

Probably a good thing. IBM is were promising IT careers go to die.

I dread to think the damage they’re gonna do in India. I hope they’re going to build the hospitals and the infrastructure to try and vaguely come compensate the people

You’ve answered your own question in the second paragraph.

The third paragraph is the most tenuous attempt to pin something on illegal / hotel migrants yet, and I say that as someone who thinks the whole immigration system is a shambles.

What are you going to blame them for next? Because I heard that they’ve got a lot to do with Space Raiders being 15p in some areas.

It probably comes down to the availability (or not, I'm looking at you UK) of electricity and how quickly power generation capacity can be added.

Data centres also have a team of Engineers that work behind the scenes that cost money & they work 24x7x365 to keep everything running. They will be responsible for the main & back up systems.
Security & access
Air con Engineers
Facilities Engineers
Power Engineers/maintenance
Admin & management/planners/escalation teams
HR, payroll

All these cost money

Try opening any business in the UK, then come back to me.

You'll have your answer.