Bengaluru: Infosys Chief Executive Officer Salil Parekh has asserted that the company does not plan to cut jobs despite the rapid rise of artificial intelligence (AI), signalling a people-first approach even as the global IT industry undergoes major transformation.
In an interview with Moneycontrol, Parekh confirmed that the company has avoided layoffs over the past year and does not foresee any workforce reduction in the near future.
“We have not done any layoffs in the last year and we don’t see anything of that sort coming up,” he said.
AI to transform work, not eliminate jobs
Parekh described AI as a structural shift that will redefine how work is done, but not necessarily reduce employment opportunities.
According to him, AI is expanding the scope of work rather than shrinking it, even though job roles and skill requirements are evolving.
This stance contrasts with moves by several industry peers such as TCS, HCLTech, Oracle, and Cognizant, which have undertaken restructuring or layoffs as automation becomes more central to operations.
Hiring push to continue
Instead of cutting back, Infosys plans to sustain its hiring momentum. The company is set to onboard around 20,000 fresh graduates this year, maintaining a similar pace to last year.
This reflects continued confidence in entry-level talent, even as AI tools reshape software development and service delivery processes.
Focus on reskilling workforce
A key pillar of Infosys’ strategy is reskilling its existing workforce. Parekh said engineers are being trained to work with both traditional programming approaches and AI-driven tools.
“We’re encouraging engineers to build code the way they used to, and then introduce new tools and foundation models,” he explained.
The training also focuses on evaluating AI-generated code, making analytical thinking and technical depth increasingly important in the AI era.
AI already driving revenue
AI is already contributing to Infosys’ business performance. Parekh noted that AI accounts for around 5.5% of the company’s revenue and is growing rapidly.
To strengthen its capabilities, Infosys is expanding partnerships with organisations like OpenAI and Anthropic, while also developing internal platforms such as Topaz Fabric to scale AI-led innovation.
Shift towards specialised skills
While entry-level opportunities remain intact, Parekh highlighted that the nature of skills in demand is changing. There is now a greater emphasis on deep domain expertise and becoming subject matter experts.
This reflects a broader industry transition where AI augments human capabilities rather than replaces them entirely.
A different path in a changing industry
Infosys’ no-layoff stance sets it apart at a time when many IT firms are recalibrating their workforce strategies in response to automation.
As AI adoption accelerates globally, the company is positioning itself on a path centred on hiring, upskilling, and long-term talent development — betting that technological change will create new opportunities rather than diminish them