Why India's top IT firm is betting big on AI engineers | News. az
India's largest software services exporter, Tata Consultancy Services (TCS), is launching a major offensive to cement its place in the artificial intelligence boom. The tech giant plans to assemble a. . .
India's largest software services exporter, Tata Consultancy Services (TCS), is launching a major offensive to cement its place in the artificial intelligence boom. The tech giant plans to assemble a specialized team of up to 8,900 "forward-deployed engineers" (FDEs) and is actively hunting for strategic AI acquisitions, according to top executives. The aggressive strategy comes at a pivotal moment for India’s $315 billion IT services sector. Investors have grown increasingly anxious that generative AI could cannibalize traditional outsourcing by automating coding, shortening project timelines, and lowering software development prices,News. Azreports, citingReuters. However, TCS leadership strongly rejects the idea that AI is a threat to their business model. CEO K. Krithivasan emphasized that as corporate clients adopt multiple, highly complex AI models, they will desperately need integration partners to safely connect those tools with legacy databases and manage data flows. RECOMMENDED STORIESIndian sailor missing after commercial vessel attacked off OmanIndia's Aditya Birla plans massive $1. 26 billion refinery expansionApple sues OpenAI over alleged iPhone secret theftBoat capsizing accident in Vietnam kills 15 Indian tourists"What you need is a deep knowledge of the customer environment to make it work. That is where we differentiate ourselves. This has nothing to do with cost arbitrage. It's essentially because of the talent pool that we have built," Krithivasan stated. To execute this vision, TCS is focusing on a multi-pronged approach:The FDE Elite Squad: The company aims to convert 1% to 1. 5% of its workforce into forward-deployed engineers—translating to roughly 5,900 to 8,900 specialists based on current headcounts. These engineers will embed directly with clients to rapidly customize and accelerate AI adoption. The move puts TCS in direct competition with Silicon Valley heavyweights like OpenAI, Microsoft, and Anthropic, who are using similar hiring strategies. Shifting the M&A Playbook: After historically avoiding corporate takeovers in favor of slow, organic growth, TCS is pivoting. CFO Samir Seksaria confirmed the Mumbai-based company is actively evaluating acquisitions inAI, data security, and cybersecurity to enhance its competitive edge. Internal Investments: TCS is currently routing approximately $1 billion annually toward internal talent development, focusing heavily on retraining existing staff and targeting niche hires in AI-native technologies. While TCS is charging ahead, the transition path may not be entirely linear. The company revealed that its annualized AI revenue growth slowed to 13% in the first quarter, down from 28% in the previous quarter. Despite the cooling pace, executives maintain a target of 25% quarter-on-quarter growth in the long term, confident that human expertise will remain the indispensable bridge between powerful AI models and practical corporate execution. News. AzBy Aysel Mammadzada