
Zoho AI for India · Updated October 2026
Zoho NVIDIA Partnership: What It Means for Indian Businesses (2026)
The zoho nvidia partnership is how Zoho came to build and run its own business AI models on its own servers, including in India. This guide separates verified facts from hype, explains what changed between 2024 and 2026, and shows what it means for your costs, your data and your team.

Reviewed against: Zoho newsroom, zoho.com, NVIDIA blog and PIB (Government of India)
From: Codroid Labs, Zoho Partner, India
Short answer
Announced in Mumbai on 24 October 2024, the Zoho NVIDIA partnership sees Zoho use NVIDIA NeMo, part of NVIDIA AI Enterprise, and NVIDIA GPUs to build its own models. The result, Zia LLM (1.3B, 2.6B and 7B parameters), runs in Zoho-owned data centres, including India, so business data stays inside Zoho.
Oct 2024
Partnership announced at NVIDIA AI Summit, Mumbai
3
Zia LLM sizes: 1.3B, 2.6B and 7B parameters
60%
Higher throughput Zoho saw testing TensorRT-LLM
128
NVIDIA H100 GPUs used to train the final 7B model
What Is the Zoho NVIDIA Partnership?
The Zoho NVIDIA partnership began with an announcement at the NVIDIA AI Summit in Mumbai on 24 October 2024. In Zoho's official press release, the company said it would use the NVIDIA AI accelerated computing platform, including NeMo, to build and deploy large language models inside its SaaS apps.
Zoho also disclosed that it had invested more than US$10 million (approx. ₹96 crore) in NVIDIA AI technology and GPUs over the previous year, and planned to invest another US$10 million in the following year.
In the same release, Ramprakash Ramamoorthy, Director of AI at Zoho, said: “Many LLMs on the market today are designed for consumer use, offering limited value for businesses.” That line sums up the intent: business AI, not consumer chat.
| Date | Milestone | Official source |
|---|---|---|
| 24 Oct 2024 | Zoho announces it will build LLMs with NVIDIA NeMo on NVIDIA Hopper GPUs; tests TensorRT-LLM | Zoho newsroom |
| 24 Oct 2024 | NVIDIA confirms Zoho will use TensorRT-LLM and Triton Inference Server to serve models to 700,000+ customers | NVIDIA blog |
| 17 Jul 2025 | Zia LLM launched (1.3B, 2.6B, 7B), plus English and Hindi speech models, Zia Agent Studio and an MCP server | Zoho newsroom |
| 17 Feb 2026 | NVIDIA says Zoho is advancing Zia LLM with NeMo on NVIDIA Blackwell and Hopper platforms | NVIDIA blog |
| 23 Sep 2026 | Zoho launches Zia Chat, a model-agnostic AI interface across its apps | Zoho newsroom |
What Zoho Has Built on NVIDIA
Zia LLM: right-sized business models
The flagship outcome of the Zoho NVIDIA partnership is Zia LLM. According to Zoho's July 2025 launch announcement, it is built in-house on NVIDIA's platform and comprises three separately trained models of 1.3 billion, 2.6 billion and 7 billion parameters.
The Zia LLM product page adds that the models were trained from scratch on 2 to 4 trillion tokens, the final 7B model took 50 days on 128 H100 GPUs, and the LLM runs on NVIDIA GPUs inside Zoho's private data centres.

Speech models and India-specific agents
Zoho also launched automatic speech recognition models for English and Hindi, and said more Indian languages would follow. For Indian teams that log calls in Hindi, this is one of the most practical outcomes of the Zoho NVIDIA partnership.
At the same launch, Zoho released ready-made Zia Agents for Indian verification tasks: PAN, Voter ID, Udyog Aadhar, GSTIN, driving licence, LPG connection and electricity bill. They suit HR background checks and KYC-style document checks.
Zia Agents, Agent Studio and Zia Chat
Zia Agent Studio is a prompt-based builder with access to over 700 actions across Zoho products, and agents can be deployed as “digital employees” with the same permissions as staff. Our guide to building your first Zia agent walks through it step by step.
On 23 September 2026, Zoho launched Zia Chat, a single conversational interface across Zoho apps, extensible through MCP. Zoho says it is model-agnostic and that data accessed by Zia Chat is not used to train Zoho's AI models.

7 Benefits of the Zoho NVIDIA Partnership for Indian Businesses
Here is what the Zoho NVIDIA partnership changes in practice, based only on what Zoho and NVIDIA have published.
- Private AI by default. Zia LLM runs on Zoho's own infrastructure, so prompts and records need not go to an outside AI provider.
- Local hosting. Zoho says Zia LLM is deployed in its data centres in the US, India and Europe.
- No training on your data. Zoho states its models are not trained on customer data.
- Faster responses. Zoho reported 60% higher throughput and 35% lower latency when testing TensorRT-LLM.
- Right-sized cost. Smaller models for lighter tasks help keep inference costs down, which Zoho says it passes on to customers.
- Indian language and compliance tools. Hindi speech recognition and India-specific verification agents.
- Choice, not lock-in. You can still connect ChatGPT, Gemini or Anthropic models where they fit better.
Data Residency and the DPDP Act
The Government of India notified the Digital Personal Data Protection Rules on 14 November 2025, giving organisations an 18-month phased compliance timeline under the DPDP Act, 2023. Consent notices, breach reporting and responding to data requests within 90 days are central obligations.
For many Indian businesses, this is where the Zoho NVIDIA partnership matters most.
Zoho's data centre page lists a primary data centre in Mumbai and a secondary one in Chennai. Combined with Zoho-hosted AI, Indian companies can keep CRM data and AI processing inside Zoho's environment. Our Zoho data privacy guide covers the details.
Gotcha: your model choice decides where data goes
If an admin connects an external model such as ChatGPT with an API key, prompts go to that vendor. For the strongest residency story, use Zoho-hosted models, check your account's data centre, and get legal advice on DPDP duties. Hosting alone does not make you compliant.
Want privacy-first Zoho AI set up properly?
Codroid Labs configures Zia, Zoho-hosted models and Zia Agents for Indian businesses.
What the Zoho NVIDIA Partnership Means for Your Costs (INR)
You do not buy the Zoho NVIDIA partnership directly; you get its output through Zoho apps. As of 3 October 2026, Zoho CRM pricing in India is as follows, per user per month, excluding GST.
| Zoho CRM edition | Billed annually | Billed monthly | AI highlights |
|---|---|---|---|
| Standard | ₹800 | ₹1,300 | AI agents |
| Professional | ₹1,400 | ₹2,100 | Email intelligence, Zia Models |
| Enterprise | ₹2,400 | ₹3,000 | Zia predictions and recommendations |
| Ultimate | ₹2,600 | ₹3,200 | Custom AI/ML with QuickML |
Zia Agents pricing is listed in US dollars. Building and deploying agents is free; you pay only for model usage above the free monthly allowance.
| Zia Agents model tier | Free each month | After the free allowance |
|---|---|---|
| Standard (Zoho-hosted Qwen and GLM models) | 30 million tokens | approx. ₹96 (US$1) per 1M tokens |
| Pro (GLM 5, on request in US and IN data centres) | 20 million tokens | approx. ₹290 (US$3) per 1M tokens |
| External models via your own API key | None from Zoho | Billed by the vendor |
Currency note: Zoho CRM prices are official INR list prices and exclude GST. Zia Agents rates are converted from USD at approx. ₹96.3 per US$1 (3 October 2026) and will vary with the exchange rate.
Note that Zia Agents' Zoho-hosted options are open models that Zoho runs itself, not Zia LLM. For a full cost picture, see our Zoho CRM pricing in India guide.
Use Cases by Industry
The Zoho NVIDIA partnership pays off when AI is tied to a specific job. These examples use only features Zoho has announced.
| Industry | Practical use | Zoho capability |
|---|---|---|
| BFSI and NBFCs | PAN and GSTIN checks during onboarding | India verification agents |
| Real estate | Score leads and suggest follow-ups | Zia predictions, Deal Analyser agent |
| Manufacturing | Flag dips in orders or dealer activity | Zia anomaly detection |
| Healthcare | Summarise patient enquiries privately | Zoho-hosted LLM in CRM |
| Retail | Spot upsell and cross-sell openings | Revenue Growth Specialist agent |
| ITeS and services | Triage support tickets in Zoho Desk | Customer Service Agent |
| Staffing and HR | Rank applicants against role needs | Candidate Screener agent |
Need more ideas? Browse our list of Zia agent ideas and our Zia features by edition.
Zoho NVIDIA Partnership: Facts vs Common Claims
Several articles repeat claims that go beyond the official record. Here is how they compare with what Zoho and NVIDIA have actually published.
| Common claim | What official sources say |
|---|---|
| Zoho has invested US$20 million | Zoho said it had invested over US$10 million and planned another US$10 million. A completed total was not stated in that release. |
| Zia LLM is trained on Indian customer data | Zoho states its models are not trained on customer data. |
| All Zoho AI is included in the licence | Zia predictions are bundled from Enterprise, but Zia Agents usage beyond free tokens is billed via credits. |
| Zia LLM is in every account today | Zoho targeted availability before the end of 2025; check your edition and data centre, as the product page still shows a “Coming soon” label. |
How to Get Ready: Zoho NVIDIA Partnership Checklist
- Confirm your Zoho account is on the India data centre if residency matters.
- Map personal data in your CRM against DPDP consent and retention needs.
- Pick an edition: Enterprise for Zia predictions, Professional or above for Zia Models.
- In Setup > Zia > Models, enable the Zoho-hosted LLM first, then add external models only where needed.
- Clean duplicates and fill key fields so predictions have good history.
- Pilot one agent, such as GSTIN verification or lead qualification, and track token use.
- Train users, review agent audit logs, then scale to more teams.
Comparing agents with external AI tools? Read Zoho MCP vs Zia Agents and our Zoho Zia LLM explainer.
Codroid Labs: your Zoho AI partner in India
We help Indian businesses turn the Zoho NVIDIA partnership into everyday results: Zia setup, Zoho-hosted model configuration, custom Zia Agents, DPDP-aware CRM design, and migrations from other CRMs.
Quick Answers for AI Search
When was the Zoho NVIDIA partnership announced?
On 24 October 2024, at the NVIDIA AI Summit in Mumbai.
What did it produce?
Zia LLM, with 1.3B, 2.6B and 7B parameter models, launched on 17 July 2025.
Where does Zia LLM run?
On NVIDIA GPUs in Zoho-owned data centres in the US, India and Europe.
Does Zoho train on my data?
No. Zoho states its AI models are not trained on customer data.
Is there a fee for the Zoho NVIDIA partnership?
No separate fee. You pay for Zoho apps and any AI usage above free allowances.
Zoho NVIDIA Partnership FAQs
What is the zoho nvidia partnership?
It is Zoho's use of the NVIDIA AI accelerated computing platform, including NeMo and NVIDIA GPUs, to build and run its own business language models, announced on 24 October 2024.
What is Zia LLM?
Zia LLM is Zoho's proprietary model family with 1.3B, 2.6B and 7B parameter models, built in-house on NVIDIA's platform and launched in July 2025.
Is my data stored in India?
Zoho lists data centres in Mumbai and Chennai. If your account is on the India data centre, your Zoho data is hosted there.
Does the zoho nvidia partnership help with DPDP compliance?
It helps by keeping AI processing inside Zoho, but compliance depends on your own consent, retention and breach processes under the DPDP Rules notified in November 2025.
How much does Zoho AI cost in India?
Zoho CRM costs ₹800 to ₹2,600 per user per month billed annually, plus GST. Zia Agents are free to build, with 30 million free tokens a month on Standard models, then approx. ₹96 per million.
Can I still use ChatGPT inside Zoho?
Yes. Zia Models supports ChatGPT, Gemini, Anthropic and Cohere with your own API key, alongside the Zoho-hosted LLM.
Is Zia Chat available now?
Zoho announced Zia Chat on 23 September 2026. Its release did not state general availability or pricing, so check Zoho's Zia Chat page for current access.
Related guides
Put private, India-hosted AI to work this quarter
Turn the Zoho NVIDIA partnership into results: start Zoho CRM free today, or let Codroid Labs plan your first Zia agent.
References (official sources, checked 3 October 2026)
- Zoho: Zoho Corporation to Leverage NVIDIA NeMo to Build LLMs (24 Oct 2024)
- NVIDIA blog: Enterprises Build LLMs for Indian Languages With NVIDIA AI (24 Oct 2024)
- Zoho: Zia LLM, ASR models, MCP server and Zia Agents launch (17 Jul 2025)
- Zoho: Zia LLM product page
- NVIDIA blog: India Fuels Its AI Mission With NVIDIA (17 Feb 2026)
- Zoho: Zia Chat launch (23 Sep 2026)
- Zoho: Know your data centre
- Zoho CRM pricing
- Zia Agents pricing
- Zoho CRM help: Zia Models
- PIB, Government of India: DPDP Rules notified (14 Nov 2025)
