HCLTech CEO Warns of ‘Painful’ AI Shift as Tech Prioritizes Efficiency Over Jobs
At the Nasscom Technology and Leadership Forum (NTLF) 2026 in Mumbai, HCLTech CEO C. Vijayakumar issued a sobering assessment of the IT industry’s current trajectory.
He described the ongoing shift to Artificial Intelligence as the sector’s “biggest inflection point,” warning that the transition will be inherently “painful” because it directly impacts the human workforce.
A Departure from Historical Cycles
Vijayakumar noted that unlike previous technological milestones—such as the Y2K surge, the rise of cloud computing, or the digital transformation wave—the AI era is fundamentally different.
While past cycles required massive hiring to manage new complexities, AI is designed to prioritize efficiency and speed.
This structural shift allows companies to deliver the same output with significantly fewer people, forcing a reinvention of traditional business models that were once built on headcount growth.
HCLTech CEO on Navigating Shareholder and Job Concerns
The CEO’s comments arrive amid a turbulent week for IT stocks.
Shares of major Indian IT firms recently saw sharp declines following reports that AI models, such as Anthropic’s Claude, are now capable of modernizing legacy COBOL code—a task long considered a staple of the $300 billion Indian IT services sector.
Despite these concerns, Vijayakumar argued that investor anxiety is “overblown.”
He emphasized that while AI can code, software development involves complex enterprise architecture and domain understanding that machines cannot yet replicate.
He stressed that this is not the time to “write an obituary” for the industry, as service providers remain the essential bridge for deploying these powerful tools within complex, real-world corporate environments.
The Path Forward: Reskilling and Innovation
To survive this transition, HCLTech’s leadership is calling for a massive, industry-wide reskilling initiative.
The goal is to transform engineers into “super users” of AI who can deliver up to four times the efficiency of traditional methods.
Vijayakumar highlighted that demand for specialized skills in data, security, and AI will grow exponentially, even as routine tasks are automated.
He concluded that while the road ahead is promising, it requires the industry to move beyond its role as a follower of technology.
Instead, firms must focus on higher-order innovation and specialized services to remain relevant in an AI-first economy.
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