As part of its Google for India Digitization Fund, the American multinational tech company has announced intentions to invest up to $1 billion in India’s second-largest mobile network operator, Bharti Airtel. The internet giant will also take a 1.28% share in the telecommunication company as part of the acquisition.

Google’s financing will comprise a $700 million equity investment and up to $300 million commercial agreements. Bharti Airtel and Google said that the money will help scale up the former’s offerings and accelerate access and digital inclusion across India’s digital ecosystem. “Airtel is a leading pioneer shaping India’s digital future, and we are proud to partner on a shared vision for expanding connectivity and ensuring equitable access to the Internet for more Indians,” said Sundar Pichai, CEO of Google and Alphabet. Furthermore, Airtel is already using Google’s 5G-ready Evolved Packet Core and Software Defined Network platforms and plans to scale up the deployment of network virtualization solutions. The two also aim to strengthen India’s cloud ecosystem and “potentially co-create India-specific network domain use cases for 5G and other standards.” Since 2004, when it previously launched offices in Hyderabad and Bangalore, Google has been a part of India’s digitalization path. “Google’s efforts in India have deepened our knowledge of how technology can be useful to all different types of people,” Pichai wrote in a blog post about this partnership’s internal impact. He added that initially building a partnership with India has aided them to craft better products for users all across the world.