WTC coming up at AI City

Hyderabad: The Telangana government on Friday said it signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU) with the World Trade Centres Association (WTCA) for setting up World Trade Centre (WTC) at upcoming AI City. The agreement was signed in the presence of Telangana IT Minister D Sridhar Babu on the second and concluding day of Telangana Global AI Summit 2024 here. The WTC AI City will feature 1 millin (10 lakh) square feet of built-up space, housing companies at the forefront of AI and emerging technologies. This is poised to be one of the largest capacity building initiatives in the field of Global AI domain, an official release said.

The facility will offer world-class office spaces, trade services, training facilities, retail and entertainment zones, co-living spaces, a luxury hotel, and primary healthcare facilities - all in line with the vision of Telangana’s leadership to develop an integrated mini smart city that embodies a ‘walk-to-work’ concept.

On the MoU, Sridhar Babu said: “Having WTC in upcoming AI City is pivotal to our goal of growing IT exports from $32 billion to $200 billion. This partnership is a testament to Telangana's commitment to driving economic growth through global collaboration”.

According to him, the establishment of WTC AI City symbolises Telangana’s growing global influence. “This collaboration will accelerate our IT export goals and position Telangana firmly among the world’s leading AI innovators,” he added. Robin van Puyenbroeck, Executive Director, WTCA, New York, expressed admiration for the speed at which the WTC license for Telangana was granted.

“Typically, securing a license for a new World Trade Center is a lengthy process. However, given the bold vision of Telangana’s leadership, we expedited the process, approving the license within a record time of one week.”