‘Best time to be in India for those in tech’ * We lead in AI talent, says Nasscom chief Gangadharan – Read

India leads on world AI stage in talent and domain skills, placing it on a strong footing in transformative era of Artificial Intelligence, Nasscom’s new chairperson Sindhu Gangadharan has said, asserting this is “the best time to be in India” particularly for those in the technology sector.

In a wide-ranging interview to PTI, Gangadharan touched upon several key issues — from the importance of mental and social well-being at workplace to economic impact of AI and GenAI — and sought to assuage concerns around artificial intelligence (AI) displacing jobs.

She stressed on the need for organisations to attach high priority to mental and physical well-being of their workforces and make it part of their organisational culture, through policies, practices and interest groups.

Gangadharan’s comment assumes significance in the backdrop of the tragic death of a young employee at one of the prominent consultancy firms that led to social media outcry and triggered intense debate in corporate India about high stress at workplaces.

Gangadharan also spoke about India’s growing clout as “GCC capital of the world”, the nation’s proven strengths in AI skills and talent, and emphasised she is “optimistic and bullish” about the future of the Indian tech industry.

“India has been very clear about its strengths, of how we lead the charge when it comes to technology, and it has demonstrated it as well…(but) we can’t rest on our laurels. It is really up to us to make sure that we play to our strengths on talent and skilling. I am very optimistic and bullish about the Indian technology industry,” she said when asked about challenges she foresees in the short to mid-term for India’s over USD 254 billion IT sector, including impact, if any, of US election results.

Gangadharan, who was named as the new chairperson of Nasscom in August this year, is also the force behind SAP Labs India in her role as managing direct