"Neighbours Already Feeling the Burn": Andhra Minister Nara Lokesh Takes Veiled Jibe at DK Shivakumar Over Google AI Hub

Andhra Pradesh IT Minister Nara Lokesh on Thursday took a veiled jibe at Karnataka Deputy Chief Minister DK Shivakumar amid their banter over Google's pledge to invest USD 15 billion over the next five years to establish a one-gigawatt-scale Artificial Intelligence (AI) hub in Visakhapatnam.

Sharing an X post, Lokesh referred to the investments in the State as "spicy," alleging envy among neighbouring States.

"They say Andhra food is spicy. Seems some of our investments are too. Some neighbours are already feeling the burn," the Andhra Pradesh Minister wrote. Earlier on Wednesday, Karnataka Deputy Chief Minister DK Shivakumar strongly defended Bengaluru, asserting that there is "no match" for the city's infrastructure, human resources and innovation.

"There is no match for Bengaluru in terms of infrastructure, human resources and innovation. Some people take the name of Bengaluru as they need it to market themselves," Shivakumar said, responding to the remarks made by Nara Lokesh.

Speaking to reporters at Vidhana Soudha, the Deputy Chief Minister said, “I will not react to the statements of Nara Lokesh or someone else. There are 25 lakh IT professionals and 2 lakh foreigners working in Bengaluru. Bengaluru's contribution to the country is immense. There is no match for Bengaluru.” 

On the launch of the Google AI Hub in Andhra Pradesh, the Karnataka Deputy CM said, "How can we stop them from going to Andhra Pradesh. They are going there because they are offering many concessions. Let them experience other places too."

When asked about the Rs 1 lakh crore investment that is missing for the state, he affirmed that the city's inherent strength attracted investments. "Foreign dignitaries keep meeting us to explore investment in the state. No one is leaving Bengaluru. We don't have to advertise; the inherent strength of Bengaluru attracts investments," he said.

Meanwhile, Google on Tuesday announced a massive investment of USD 15 billion over the next five years to establish one gigawatt-scale Artificial Intelligence (AI) hub in Visakhapatnam, Andhra Pradesh, the company's largest AI hub outside the United States.

The announcement came during 'Bharat AI Shakti', an event hosted by Google in New Delhi.

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