Hiring Outpaces Layoffs, For Now
Recent industry analysis presents a surprisingly positive picture of AI's immediate impact on employment in India. A Nomura report covering the period from 2022 to August 2026 found that the country saw 83,100 new AI-related hires, significantly more
than the 31,921 layoffs attributed to the technology. This translates to roughly 2.6 new AI jobs for every role lost, positioning India as a key case study for AI's effect on large workforces. Most of the hiring has been concentrated in the IT services sector, with companies actively recruiting graduates to meet the soaring demand for AI-related projects. In contrast, the roles being eliminated are often in support functions, where AI-powered chatbots are replacing human agents. This top-level data suggests a net gain, but a closer look reveals a more complex and fractured reality for workers.
A Growing Divide in the Job Market
The creation of new AI roles is not a simple one-for-one replacement for the jobs being lost. The Nomura report highlights the emergence of a two-tiered labour market. Companies are reducing their intake of entry-level employees for routine tasks that can now be automated. An ICRIER survey cited in the report found that 55% of IT firms reported a decline in entry-level hiring. At the same time, demand for experienced and senior workers with specialised AI skills remains strong. This creates a critical disconnect: a customer support representative whose job has been automated cannot easily transition into a machine learning engineering role without significant reskilling. The new jobs demand specific, high-level expertise that the displaced workers rarely possess.
Anxiety in the Age of AI
Despite the positive hiring numbers, anxiety is pervasive across the Indian workforce. A NASSCOM report found that 42% of employees feel anxious about AI disrupting their jobs. Perhaps more surprisingly, this insecurity extends to those who were thought to be the safest: AI professionals themselves. A July 2026 survey of 1,552 Indian professionals by the anonymous platform Blind revealed a startling trend. It found that 66% of employees working in AI and machine learning expect layoffs or significant headcount reductions in their teams within the next six months. This level of concern places AI workers just behind sales and marketing professionals (68%) as one of the most anxious groups in the workforce. The findings challenge the widespread belief that a career in AI is a guaranteed safe haven from automation.
The Race to Upskill
In response to this shifting landscape, both companies and employees are scrambling to adapt. Indian business leaders are moving urgently to integrate AI, with one Microsoft report from late 2025 showing that 93% of leaders planned to use AI to augment their workforce. This has made upskilling a top priority. Over half of business executives identified training as their primary focus for the coming year. Workers are also taking matters into their own hands. However, NASSCOM notes that AI skill development is largely informal, with 73% of employees learning through self-driven channels. This highlights a critical gap between the skills companies need and the training available. While government initiatives like FutureSkills PRIME are in place, the pace of formal education and corporate training struggles to keep up with the exponential demand for AI talent, which is projected to exceed one million professionals by 2026.
