India's GCCs moved from cost to capability, but ‘routine’ jobs are exposed to AI; CEA Anantha Nageswaran

India is said to host over 2100 Global Capability Centres (GCCs) and employs close to 2.3 million professionals. This has generated more than $64 billion in revenue and is projected to cross $100 billion, according to Chief Economic Adviser (CEA) Dr V. Anantha Nageswaran. During a special address at the CII GCC Business Summit 2026, he emphasised how India’s GCCs have evolved from being low-cost back offices to becoming hubs for engineering, product development and artificial intelligence.

“These centres first came to India for cost. They stayed for capability, Nageswaran said, adding that what began as support operations has now evolved into centres where “global decisions are now made.”

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He added that India now hosts roughly half of all GCCs worldwide, which he said "no other country comes close" to matching. Among these centres, more than 1,200 GCCs are doing “serious work” in artificial intelligence and machine learning.

AI-jobs disruption

Addressing concerns over AI disrupting jobs, Nageswaran acknowledged that routine and repetitive work could be replaced by AI and automation. However, he argued that India's GCC ecosystem has already moved beyond such work.

“Part of the old model is indeed exposed. The work that was routine, repetitive and rule-bound is exactly the work that AI does most easily and most cheaply,” he said. However, he also argued that AI is expected to increase demand for professionals capable of designing, deploying, testing and governing AI systems.

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“Artificial intelligence does not build, deploy or govern itself. Someone has to design these systems. Someone has to train them, test them, correct them, and hold them to account,” Nageswaran said. Therefore, rather than a disruption, he sees AI as an opportunity for GCCs.

“AI does not empty these centres. In the centres that are run well, it raises the value of each person who works there,” he said. But he also cautioned that organisations who dont adapt will face the risk of falling behind. “The centres that stand still will suffer. The centres that move up will thrive.”

Industry–government collaboration

The CEA also emphasised expanded collaboration between government, industry and academia to bridge India's employability gap. Nageswaran highlighted that while the country produces a massive number of graduates every year, buy only half of them are job-ready from day one. He said the government must create enabling policies, but industry must lead the shift towards higher-value innovation.

"Government can build the runway. It cannot fly the plane," Nageswaran said.