GCCs outpace IT services in tech hiring, driving AI & cloud talent

Global capability centres (GCCs) added nearly 200,000 net employees in FY26, almost twice the 110,000 added by information technology services firms in the same period, outpacing them for the third year in a row. That signals a shift in where advanced technology talent is being built in India, staffing firms and industry experts told ET.

The centres now account for 30-35% of all artificial intelligence-related hiring in India, according to industry estimates. They have become the primary destination for roles in AI and machine learning engineering, cloud architecture and product development.

“GCCs have been leading net tech hiring in India for three consecutive years,” said Neeti Sharma, chief executive of staffing firm TeamLease Digital. “They are now the dominant driver of high-end talent demand in roles such as AI/ML engineering, cloud architecture and product development.”

She added that GCCs are no longer just cost centres but are shaping where advanced engineering and AI skills are being developed and absorbed in India.

The trend is also changing how global enterprises structure their India operations.

“Many GCCs now operate with their own budgets and increasingly sign agreements outside global procurement frameworks,” said Vikram Ahuja, co-founder of ANSR, a GCC enabler. “This is particularly visible in AI, engineering and platform-led work, effectively turning GCCs into separate buying centres.”

Ahuja said AI adoption within GCCs is accelerating, with around 83% of Indian centres scaling AI initiatives and 58% investing in agentic AI. Another 29% are expected to do so within the next year.

This rapid expansion is also reshaping the broader GCC enabler ecosystem, estimated at $12-15 billion, according to the UnearthIQ GCC enabler market report. More than 5,000 firms are competing for GCC-linked opportunities in India. Office space and recruitment account for the bulk of spending, while innovation enablement, AI platforms and managed services remain smaller but higher-margin segments.

Services such as staffing, subcontracting, recruitment, setup advisory, tax and compliance are becoming increasingly commoditised and low-margin, while a smaller set of premium segments continues to expand.

“Specialised offerings like innovation enablement, AI tools and managed services still carry premium pricing and high margins,” said Gaurav Vasu, founder of market research firm UnearthInsight. “Commoditised categories such as recruitment, subcontracting and compliance support are commoditised and will continue to operate as low margin offerings.”

However, IT services firms remain central to India’s technology workforce. IT services have added over 950,000 employees over the last five fiscal years, compared to about 660,000 by GCCs, said Kamal Karanth, co-founder of staffing firm Xpheno.

While GCCs have overtaken IT services in net annual additions over the last three fiscals, their overall share of the tech sector has moved only marginally from 24% to 25%. IT services continue to account for over 34% of total tech headcount.

Experts said this points to a twin-track evolution of India’s technology sector, where GCCs are driving growth in AI-led and specialised roles, while IT services firms continue to anchor overall scale and workforce numbers.