One entrepreneur per family: Chandrababu Naidu’s new economic vision for Andhra Pradesh

Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister N Chandrababu Naidu has ambitious plan to make every household in the state part of India’s digital and entrepreneurial transformation. His new mantra — “one entrepreneur per family” — is designed to democratise opportunity and turn Andhra Pradesh into a hub for Artificial Intelligence (AI) adoption and innovation.

“Earlier, I promoted Hi-Tec City — that one policy made the Telugu community proud all over the world,” Naidu told CNBC-TV18. “Today, I’m thinking of the next level of technology — Artificial Intelligence. I now want to promote every family as an entrepreneur and ensure every family uses or creates an AI use case.”

Naidu said Andhra Pradesh has already secured a major endorsement of its technology roadmap, with Google announcing a $15 billion investment in the state. The government is also positioning Amaravati as India’s most advanced capital city — integrating data centres, AI-driven governance, and next-generation digital infrastructure.

The Chief Minister, who first made his mark in the 1990s by attracting global IT companies to Hyderabad, said the state now has the talent and the infrastructure to lead India’s AI revolution. “Everyone should live a meaningful and purposeful life,” he said, emphasising the need for technology to empower every family.

Under the new policy push, Andhra Pradesh aims to develop digital skills, incubate AI start-ups, and create public-private partnerships in emerging technologies. Naidu said the state would focus on integrating AI into education, agriculture, logistics, and governance.

Below is the excerpt of the interview.

Q: You’ve always been pro-reform, pro-industry, and result-driven. In your fourth term, what is the legacy that Chandrababu Naidu wants to leave behind?

Naidu: I have seen so many things in this country. In the mid-90s, when I became Chief Minister, nobody used to talk about reforms, and nobody took ownership. I not only took ownership but also promoted what economic reforms mean and what the future would look like. Around the mid-90s, India saw the first-mover advantage in Information Technology. After that, we got the benefit of a demographic dividend — that was a windfall gain.

Now, we are in inspiring times. I have seen the pre-reform, post-reform, and early reform periods — and the beginning of the technology revolution. In those days, our telecommunications sector was totally primitive. BSNL and VSNL were both public sector companies. For international calls, you had to book a “lightning call” through a manual exchange, and it would take up to seven days to connect. The cost was prohibitive.

At that time, my son was studying abroad, and I was afraid to talk to him on the phone because the next day in the assembly, they would ask how much I had spent. Then I fought hard — through two or three Prime Ministers — and finally, with Vajpayee as Prime Minister, I submitted a report on deregulation of the telecom sector. Today, you can see the results.

Q: What would you like to achieve now in your fourth term? You’re focused on Amaravati — making it the number one capital in India — and you also want to make Andhra Pradesh the biggest AI hub in the country. But in the next four years, in this term of yours, what would you like to achieve?

Naidu: You’ve seen my contribution. Hyderabad is a proof of concept. The success of IT professionals around the world is part of that story. Everyone should leave behind a meaningful and purposeful legacy.

When I started my career, I promoted Hi-Tec City — that one policy made the Telugu community proud all over the world. Today, we have one of the highest per capita incomes. Now, I’m thinking of the next level of technology — Artificial Intelligence.

Google has already announced a $15 billion investment. I now want to promote the concept of “one entrepreneur per family” and ensure that every family either uses AI or creates an AI use case. That’s what I’m promoting. Earlier, it was Hi-Tec City; now, it’s Quantum Valley.

The Government of India has introduced the Quantum Mission, and based on that policy, we have received India’s first quantum computer from IBM and TCS. Our people are now ready to manufacture quantum computers. Indians are very capable.

I had earlier submitted a report on reforms, based on which many policies were introduced. Today, BSNL has produced 4G; 5G, 6G, and 7G are only a matter of time. Replication is easy because Indians have the capacity. Andhra Pradesh is a high-tech state — with AI, data centres, quantum computing, private space launches, drone technology, electronics, aerospace, and semiconductors. We are working on all of these.

Q: I’d like to ask you about the CII Summit taking place in Andhra Pradesh — 410 MoUs worth ₹9.8 lakh crore have been signed. Could you share the thrust areas or name some companies investing in the Andhra Pradesh ecosystem?

Naidu: Andhra Pradesh has a very strong and vibrant ecosystem. In fact, like India, Andhra Pradesh is a sleeping giant. We have a 1,000-kilometre coastline on the east coast — no other state has this advantage. I want to build one port every 50 kilometres under a hub-and-spoke model, and ensure that every location is within one hour of an airport.

We already have airports in Tirupati and Visakhapatnam, and new airports are coming up in Bhogapuram and Amaravati. Many more are in the pipeline. We have one of the best road networks in the country — earlier, our state highways were in bad condition, but now I am revamping and reconstructing all these roads.

We also have a strong railway network. The Railway Minister has already spoken about doubling the line from Visakhapatnam to Chennai. I want to connect every port with railways and inland waterways. By connecting all these, Andhra Pradesh will become a logistics hub — not only for the state but for the entire country.

Q: You mentioned the $15 billion Google investment — that’s a big win for Andhra Pradesh. Do we expect more such deals in the coming weeks and months?

Naidu: Yes, already we have Google and the ArcelorMittal steel plant project. We cleared that project very quickly. The Government of India has also cleared it. The project will start operations in about three to three-and-a-half years, with investments ranging from ₹1 lakh crore to ₹1.57 lakh crore.

BPCL’s refinery project, worth around ₹1 lakh crore in Ramayapatnam, is also progressing. NTPC and the Government of Andhra Pradesh have launched a joint venture in green hydrogen — with an investment of around ₹1.6 lakh crore.

If you compare, we’re seeing industrialisation of the future. Agro-processing is another focus area — especially in Rayalaseema, which is set to become a horticulture hub. Reliance has set up one of the world’s biggest beverage plants here, which will begin operations in February 2026. There’s a lot of investor interest in the state.

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