Bharti Airtel partners with Zscaler to launch AI & Cyber Threat Research Center

Bharti Airtel and cloud security company Zscaler have joined forces to launch the AI & Cyber Threat Research Center – India to protect India’s critical infrastructure from high-tech hackers. The announcement was made during the India AI Impact Summit 2026 in the presence of IT minister Ashwini Vaishnaw. According to the telecom giant, the centre is designed to be a ‘national shield’ that will protect essential sectors like banking, energy and telecommunications from the growing threat of AI-powered cyberattacks.

What the AI & Cyber Threat Research Center – India will do

According to the companies, the AI & Cyber Threat Research Center – India will have four goals:

1. Protect: Deliver real-time, actionable intelligence to strengthen India’s national cyber resilience and digital-first businesses.
2. Remediate: Partner directly with government agencies to neutralize and prevent cyber-attacks.
3. Facilitate: Drive the adoption of modern security frameworks, specifically focusing on AI-driven defenses and Zero Trust architecture.
4. Build: Strengthen the cybersecurity talent pipeline through specialized AI and Zero Trust certifications to bridge the national skills gap.

“We will focus on addressing challenges unique to our market to build a safer, more resilient digital India where every citizen and enterprise can connect and thrive with confidence. Our research-backed preventive mechanism will also encourage peaceful and secure engagements on digital platforms,” said Gopal Vittal, Executive ViceChairman, Bharti Airtel.

Why India needs an AI defense now

Zscaler’s research team, ThreatLabz India, has revealed some alarming statistics that triggered the need for this center, the companies say.

The claim that about 1.2 million hacking attempts targeted at 58 Indian digital entities from over 20,000 different sources. Moreover, cyber campaigns using regional geopolitical tensions to target Indian government and private assets have also been recorded. Reportedly, there has been an increase in attacks that use previously unknown software flaws to break into systems.

“With the AI & Cyber Threat Research Center – India, we will bring the full power of the world’s largest security cloud to protect the nation’s public and private sectors. By combining actionable intelligence from over 500 billion daily transactions with local expertise, we aren't just building readiness; we are empowering a new generation of defenders to stay ahead of the adversary,” added Jay Chaudhry, CEO, chairman, and founder, Zscaler.

The collaboration creates a unique “research-to-response” loop. Zscaler brings its global security cloud, which processes over 500 billion transactions daily, to spot global trends. Airtel provides visibility into India’s massive mobile and IoT (Internet of Things) traffic.