Bengaluru: Storage and data management company NetApp inaugurated an independent campus in Whitefield in Bengaluru, set up with an investment of Rs 1,000 crore.
NetApp, a $5.55 billion company, has also launched a startup accelerator programme called Escape Velocity in Bengaluru. This will nurture startups, especially those aligned to the company’s vision of what it calls “data fabric”. The company wants to simplify the use of enterprise-grade data management solutions. Its data fabric connects different data management environments across disparate clouds to manage, secure, protect, and access data, no matter where it is.
“We are announcing this startup accelerator so that we can bring our expertise and our infrastructure to enable a range of storage and data management capabilities,” CEO George Kurian said. The first batch of the accelerator will include 4-5 startups.
Kurian said India is home to some of the world’s best talent. He said it is necessary for NetApp to be in India also because “economies of the 21 st century will be created in this part of the world.”
The centre is NetApp’s largest in the world in terms of engineering strength. Out of its eight such sites, seven are in North America. It currently employs 2,000 people in Bengaluru, all of who were previously working out of a leased facility in a tech park. The new campus has the capacity to accommodate 3,500 people. NetApp employs 10,000 people globally.
CEO George Kurian, who was in Bengaluru for the launch, said substantial investment has also gone into expanding other capabilities including a shared services centre and a customer support centre. “We have been in India since 2000. The operations here was led by our R&D centre. The success we have had leading global teams and building breakthrough innovations from India has caused us to invest much more broadly towards this entire business centre based here in Bengaluru,” he said.
The inauguration saw the presence also of Chief Minister Siddaramaiah and state Industries Minister R V Deshpande.
Asked if US President-elect Donald Trump could hurt India’s tech industry, Kurian said Trump recognizes the strategic importance of India. He said Trump would support US tech institutions and their initiatives.
Source: The Times of India
