India continues to attract billions of dollars in investments from global technology companies looking to expand artificial intelligence (AI), cloud computing, and digital infrastructure. However, HSBC Private Bank believes investors seeking to benefit from Asia’s AI boom may find stronger opportunities in other regional markets.
In its Top Trends and High Conviction Themes: Mid-Year 2026 report, HSBC identifies Asia as a major beneficiary of the next wave of AI-driven growth. Yet, the bank’s preferred investment destinations are China, Japan, South Korea, and Singapore, while India receives only limited mention and does not feature as a dedicated AI investment theme.
Despite global economic uncertainty and geopolitical tensions, multinational companies continue to make significant long-term commitments to India.
Google recently announced a $15 billion investment plan over five years to strengthen India’s AI ecosystem through data centres, cloud infrastructure, subsea connectivity, and AI skill development.
Australian data centre operator AirTrunk followed with plans to invest $30 billion to build 5 GW of data centre capacity in India by 2030. Meanwhile, the Canada Pension Plan Investment Board committed up to ₹7,000 crore alongside CtrlS Datacenters to expand hyperscale digital infrastructure.
Amazon has also increased its India investment commitment to $48 billion by 2030, with AI and cloud services forming a major part of the expansion strategy. Industrial companies are joining the investment cycle as well, with ABB announcing a $75 million expansion of its manufacturing and R&D facilities, while Saint-Gobain has pledged another €1 billion investment over the next five years.
These investments reflect growing confidence in India’s digital economy, manufacturing capabilities, and long-term technology potential.
While global corporations are investing heavily in India’s infrastructure, HSBC’s investment strategy focuses on publicly listed companies that are already positioned to benefit from AI adoption.
The bank identifies China as its strongest AI investment market, citing opportunities in semiconductors, AI models, robotics, electric vehicles, batteries, and biotechnology.
Japan earns a positive outlook due to corporate governance reforms, higher shareholder returns, and record share buybacks. South Korea is favoured for its leadership in semiconductors and AI technologies, while Singapore benefits from investor-friendly reforms and strong capital markets.
One of HSBC’s highest-conviction themes is Asia’s rapidly expanding data centre industry. The bank expects Asia-Pacific data centre capacity to more than double by 2030, accounting for nearly 40% of global capacity.
HSBC believes semiconductor manufacturers, server makers, cooling-system suppliers, power infrastructure companies, and industrial metal producers will be among the biggest beneficiaries.
However, when identifying the strongest regional opportunities, the report highlights Australia, Japan, Southeast Asia, and China, with India notably absent from the list of preferred investment markets.
Two different perspectives on AI growth
The contrast reflects two different approaches to evaluating Asia’s AI opportunity.
Global technology companies are investing in India to build the infrastructure that will support future AI adoption, including data centres, cloud platforms, manufacturing facilities, and research capabilities.
HSBC, on the other hand, is focused on identifying listed companies that are already deeply integrated into the AI value chain and are expected to deliver stronger returns for investors.
As a result, India continues to emerge as one of the world’s fastest-growing AI infrastructure destinations, even as HSBC’s preferred investment portfolio remains centred on China, Japan, South Korea, and Singapore.
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