Infosys sees $300-400 bn AI services opportunity by 2030: Nilekani

Artificial Intelligence will not replace IT services companies but will instead create a $300-400 billion AI-first services market by 2030, according to Infosys Chairman Nandan Nilekani.

Addressing shareholder concerns over the impact of AI on the IT services industry during the company’s 45th annual general meeting (AGM) on Tuesday, the Infosys Co-founder said the sector was undergoing one of its biggest technology transitions. “The industry is going through a major technology transition, during which questions are asked about our relevance, leadership or ability to maintain growth and margins. Given that AI is a much larger and more disruptive technology transition than ever before, the questions are louder and the doubts more insistent. The existential question is: if coding becomes automated, why are we needed at all?” he said.

More than three years after the advent of generative AI, Infosys remains more relevant than ever and is well-positioned for the decade ahead, Nilekani said. While the company will adopt advanced coding tools to improve productivity, substantial work remains across the broader software development lifecycle.

“The AI deployment gap in our large enterprise clients is real, and closing that gap is where the work is. AI will not replace companies like ours, but amplify those who move with purpose and adapt with speed,” he said.

Nilekani said the AI revolution has made legacy modernisation urgent, with clients increasingly seeking to retire decades of accumulated technical debt.

“The preference will increasingly be to build rather than buy software. All this creates larger opportunities for us. The defining opportunity lies in integrating intelligent AI systems with mission-critical enterprise platforms. The greatest value will come from combining the world of models and agents with traditional transaction systems that continue to underpin enterprise operations. That convergence is where the next wave of opportunities will emerge,” he added.

Despite a challenging macroeconomic environment, Infosys reported revenue of $20.2 billion in FY26, up 3.1 per cent in constant currency terms. The company maintained an adjusted operating margin of 21 per cent and generated $3.7 billion in free cash flows, equivalent to 112.6 per cent of the net profit. Large deal total contract value (TCV) stood at $14.9 billion, with 55 per cent classified as net new.

Infosys CEO and MD Salil Parekh said the company ended the year with 41 clients generating annual revenue of more than $100 million each.

“One critical area we have focused on over the past year has been taking our AI approach to the market. Internally, we have been working on this for many years. We have built platforms such as Topaz and Fabric, which enable us to deliver strong AI capabilities to clients in partnership with leading AI companies,” Parekh said.

He outlined six broad areas where clients are deploying AI to drive growth, improve service quality and enhance efficiency. These include AI engineering and strategy, data, process transformation, technology modernisation through AI agents, physical AI across sectors such as manufacturing, healthcare and automotive, and AI trust focused on security and responsible AI.

“When we look at this collectively, we see an addressable market of about $300 billion over the next five years. It gives us a clear focus on how we drive growth,” Parekh said.

Infosys had earlier disclosed that AI services accounted for 5.5 per cent of revenue, representing an annualised run rate of roughly $1 billion. Parekh said the company continues to witness strong growth in AI-related revenues.

On acquisitions completed during the year, Parekh said Infosys would continue to pursue deals in areas where it sees strong growth opportunities and where businesses can be integrated effectively. The company recruited more than 20,000 college graduates during FY26 and ended the year with a workforce of over 325,000 employees.