India, generating 20% of global data, holds only 3% of data centre capacity; set to quadruple in 5 years: CB Velayuthan, CEO, Digital Connexion

In a recent interaction with Express Computer, CB Velayuthan, CEO, Digital Connexion, provides insights into the company’s ambitious plans and recent developments. Velayuthan highlights their joint venture with Digital Realty, Brookfield Asset Management, and Reliance, leading to a rebranding as Digital Connexion. He also shares their commitment to delivering global standards of reliability, security, and efficiency, noting advancements in AI, energy efficiency, and sustainable practices.

Please talk about the recent developments and partnerships in Digital Connexion.

We’re going to be launching in Mumbai soon, which is set for the end of next year. Construction is already underway in the central part of Mumbai, where we have our data centre being built. We’re very excited about this development. We’re also enthusiastic about India in general. 

We’ve partnered with Digital Realty, a global data centre with two decades of experience, and Brookfield Asset Management. Both companies were involved together, and then Reliance joined in the middle of last year, wanting to be part of this joint venture. The new JV closed in December, and since then, we have rebranded and renamed ourselves Digital Connexion. We’ve been operating under this name for seven months now, although the organisation has been around for three years. 

We’re excited about India and believe this is an inflection point for the data centre and data transformation happening in the country. For us, it feels like the right place at the right time.

If I am a potential customer, what would attract me to Digital Connexion?

Our customers span across all sectors and geographies. We are unique in being a global enterprise as in the Digital Realty, serving a large part of the enterprise ecosystem worldwide. We can offer any global customer, enterprise or otherwise, the same international standards. This provides great confidence and relief for enterprises looking to move their critical and other workloads into our data centre platform, allowing them to do so reliably, securely, and with great value.

Efficiency is a crucial aspect for any enterprise joining us, as it helps reduce ongoing energy costs. Our technology ensures minimal differences between what is being used, enhancing utility efficiency. We have implemented state-of-the-art air cooling technologies, including maglev turbo coolers, which have reduced energy costs by up to 15%. Energy is a significant running cost for any enterprise, especially at scale, making this a vital consideration.

Security is another critical element, both physical and cyber. We incorporate advanced technologies to ensure comprehensive security. Enterprises coming into our data centres typically don’t want to be isolated; they need to connect to their branches, offices, or even the cloud. Our infrastructure supports this need. We have over seven telco carriers in our data centre, enabling enterprises to connect seamlessly to the local Indian market and globally. Chennai, for instance, is a submarine cable landing station with a hub of cables.

Additionally, through Digital Realty we have a proprietary service fabric technology roadmap rollout in India, which connects all our data centres globally at the click of a button. This allows enterprises, whether in Chennai, London, or Singapore, to manage, configure, and monitor their operations seamlessly through a one-stop shop without going through multiple stages. This unique value proposition is highly attractive and beneficial for any enterprise looking to leverage these solutions.

Are you leveraging any digital initiatives to strengthen your security posture?

That’s a very good question. We realise that customers entrust a lot of their data to our digital platforms, and this is something we take very seriously. Whether it concerns our operational maintenance or any potential breaches from a digital perspective, we have comprehensive monitoring in place globally. 

Firstly, we monitor our local data centre, and this is backed up with a global network operations centre. We follow  “Digital Realty’s” model which operates 24/7, with different shifts of our team members across the world managing our data centres. Any abnormality is detected before it becomes serious, allowing us to address problems instantly and rapidly. This is crucial to how we offer our solutions to customers.

Currently, the question isn’t just about how protected your data is, but how quickly you can recover it. There is an understanding that threats and breach attempts will occur—there are thousands of attempts every day. The key is to predict, act, and manage these threats as swiftly as possible.

Given our global network, we are uniquely positioned to incorporate the best practices and learnings from around the world. What happens in London, for example, can be relevant here too. We can immediately apply these global insights to enhance our local operations. This allows us to predict and prevent issues before they arise, managing abnormalities effectively on a global scale.

What is the relevance of AI, particularly Generative AI, to your work, and how are you leveraging its benefits?

I think, and it’s common knowledge that AI is transformational, right? It is one of those technologies that diffuses the physical and digital worlds even more than before. We used to think that a phone was the way it was—diffusing us and letting us carry our digital world in our hands without needing to go somewhere. Now, you can interact with it live, with apps that are almost like having a senior’s guidance. People are even talking about interviews being conducted by AI, and it’s tough to tell the difference between AI and a human interviewer.

All of this is positive. There are great use cases emerging, and the interesting part is that making all this happen requires a lot of processing. To achieve near real-time, human-like interfaces, you need incredible amounts of processing and training. It’s unbelievable how much effort it takes. We often quickly judge an app we’re not satisfied with, but the training needed to improve it is immense. By training, I mean having the infrastructure to support and drive it.

To scale this kind of infrastructure, you need more low-power bonds to densify operating processes. Nowadays, servers can handle up to around 150 kilowatts compared to the 3 to 4 kilowatts we had before. This shows the scale difference. To cater to this, our data centres are built with AI in mind. 

We’ve incorporated new technologies down to the Direct Liquid to Chip (DLC) and Immersion technologies. These technologies are required for power-hungry operations. Our data centres in Chennai are among the most equipped for AI.

How do you plan to address the rapidly increasing data centre capacity requirements in India, and what strategies are you implementing to meet this exponential growth over the next five years?

I think India probably generates around 20% of the data globally, and we have around 3% of the data centre capacity. If we don’t do anything more and just use what we have, we’ve got at least 4 or 5 times the capacity to keep up with it if we want to do more in India. So, we believe that today we’re at some 850 megawatts in terms of what’s used. We think it’s going to double in the next two years and go up to 5 gigawatts. In the next five years, it’s going to almost quadruple in terms of capacity. 

This is an incredibly exponential kind of capacity that’s going to be required, and that’s what makes Digital Connexion very excited to be here. We’re bringing in the best, offering unique, state-of-the-art, and international solutions to the market. We believe this goal is only going to accelerate in growth, which is why we believe that being around 7-8 months old in the country, we are at the right time now, with the right products and the right people. This is a transition phase, so it’s a very topical discussion to have right now.

Do you have any plans to partner with the government or similar initiatives, like TCS and BSNL’s recent projects?

We work across all sectors, including the government, which we believe will experience exponential data growth. We actively collaborate with every sector in the country, including Reliance, one of our shareholders, leveraging their access and presence in India. We are really committed to working with all of them and driving these efforts forward.

How can you ensure sustainability amid the growing number of data centres and increasing data usage?

It’s a fascinating question in the sense that, in the race to build more data centre capacity—something that is certainly needed—companies must consider whether they are doing it responsibly and sustainably. There are many ways to quickly build data centres, but it is crucial to ensure that the impact on the environment is positive. At Digital Connexion, sustainability is a core value in how we build everything. 

One aspect to consider is the use of renewable energy. Equally important, and something we believe is unique to us, is integrating sustainability from the design phase. Making data centres energy-efficient is a key element of this approach. We take pride in using the best technology to ensure our data centres are state-of-the-art. Whether it concerns power or cooling, we focus on efficiency. For instance, we have implemented technologies that minimise water usage. During design and construction, we ensured minimal water usage, using it only where necessary. Currently, our data centres use almost no water for cooling, which is quite unique. We have cutting-edge air coolers that require zero water, so the only water used in our data centres is for drinking.

Regarding renewable energy, our data centres have access to green power through our partnership with Brookfield, which has over 20 gigawatts of renewable energy capacity across the country. This access to green power benefits our customers by being both sustainable and economical. While the initial installation cost might be higher, the long-term operational cost of green power is much more economical. This provides a great incentive for customers, as enterprises can access green power from day one—a significant advantage compared to not having it.

What do you think are the current challenges facing data centres in the Indian market?

As you know, the opportunity this country provides is unparalleled in terms of demand growth and the ability to scale up. The market’s attractiveness for investments is significant, and having global players like us come into India with a deep, long-term commitment is quite unique. There aren’t many countries with such an appeal for global players. This is genuinely exciting for us.

In terms of how this will unfold, it requires constant dialogue. As we expand and grow, we need to navigate each location efficiently and quickly. We work with all stakeholders to ensure we can achieve this. The exciting part is the government’s interest in this process. 

The government recognises that accelerating and promoting digital growth will enhance the entire ecosystem and boost the economy. As the digital economy drives GDP growth, it’s the right approach from an overall perspective. At Digital Connexion, we are thrilled about the opportunities ahead and what we, as a company, can offer as a differentiator. We believe our solutions can help enterprises across all sectors scale up and succeed. Our customers’ success fuels demand and benefits the country, which is why we are excited about this journey.