Lenovo announced on Tuesday (September 17, 2024) it will start making AI servers at its plant in South India. The laptop-maker also opened a R&D lab in Bengaluru. The lab will focus on developing advanced server technologies, the company said. 

The China-based company aims to make 50,000 AI rack servers and 2,400 graphic processing unit (GPU) servers that are built especially for AI-related tasks that are compute-heavy at its plant in Puducherry.

“This development marks a significant step toward achieving both Lenovo’s and the Indian government’s ‘AI for All’ vision,” said Amar Babu, President – Asia Pacific, Lenovo. “We remain committed to driving India’s growth as an innovation hub by expanding our global manufacturing footprint and harnessing the strength of Indian talent and the industry ecosystem for technology R&D.” 

These servers will meet the growing demand for AI infrastructure, both in India and abroad, with more than 60% of production set for export across the Asia-Pacific region, the company stated.

Besides being shipped locally, the servers will also be exported to international markets. 

The plant in Puducherry already makes laptops, smartphones and notebooks for the brand. Notably, Lenovo now gets around 47% of its revenue from non-PC businesses. 

The Bengaluru R&D centre will be Lenovo’s fourth faculty for infrastructure after Beijing, Taipei and Morrisville centres. This lab will develop and test new server platforms including hardware, firmware and software. 

“Our commitment to developing local talent and supporting India’s tech economy is long-term,” said Shailendra Katyal, Managing Director, Lenovo India. 

The announcement is a boost to the country’s growing manufacturing capacity after Apple and Foxconn’s increasing dependence on India. 

The AI server market is booming and is estimated to be worth $430 billion in 2033, up from just $31 billion in 2023, per Statista.