TCS CEO K Krithivasan has expressed confidence that the Indian IT services industry will not face obsolescence by 2030, despite recent challenges. This assertion comes on the heels of TCS reporting its first annual revenue decline since going public in 2004, with a drop of 2.4% in FY26.
Despite this setback, TCS achieved its highest-ever total contract value (TCV) of $40.7 billion during the same fiscal year. Krithivasan remarked, “We have been writing its obituary every 10 years but I think Indian IT services have proven to be very resilient.” This resilience is attributed to the industry’s ability to adapt and evolve, particularly in the face of technological advancements.
In FY26, TCS hired an impressive 44,000 trainees and made 25,000 offers for the next hiring cycle, indicating a strong commitment to nurturing future talent. Additionally, TCS completed its largest acquisition in over a decade, purchasing Coastal Cloud for $700 million, further solidifying its market position.
As the industry shifts towards AI-led roles and services, Krithivasan noted a significant transformation in workforce requirements. He stated, “We will need a lesser proportion of programmers. We require model trainers, context/prompt engineers, people who can test models and agent developers.” This shift underscores the growing importance of AI in modern IT services.
Moreover, TCS is preparing to launch its HyperVault data centre, expected to go live in 2028, with a target capacity of 1 GW. The company has already established two memorandums of understanding (MoUs) for the data centre and is in discussions for more partnerships.
Aarthi Subramanian, a key figure at TCS, emphasized the opportunities presented by generative AI, particularly in modernizing legacy systems. She remarked, “GenAI has unlocked a significant opportunity in legacy modernization, particularly for large, decades-old systems such as mainframes.”
Looking ahead, Krithivasan remains optimistic about the future of TCS and the broader Indian IT sector. “Definitely, we are more optimistic. I think some of the headwinds are behind us. So, that’s the opportunity,” he concluded.
As the industry navigates these changes, observers will be watching closely to see how TCS adapts and leverages its strengths to maintain its leadership in the evolving landscape of technology services.
