Artificial intelligence is emerging as one of the biggest growth drivers for Tata Consultancy Services, with the company seeing growing demand from clients looking to embed AI into core business operations rather than use it as a standalone technology tool. Speaking at the company's annual general meeting, Chairman N Chandrasekaran said AI represents the most significant opportunity the IT industry has seen so far, surpassing earlier technology waves in both scale and potential impact.

Businesses across sectors are increasingly prioritising resilience, efficiency and productivity amid geopolitical uncertainty and economic volatility, he said, adding that AI is becoming central to those efforts.

"AI is the most significant opportunity yet for TCS and the IT industry," Chandrasekaran said.

According to him, AI is already changing the way software is developed and maintained by reducing the amount of human effort required across multiple stages of the process.

"AI does more than reducing the effort," Chandrasekaran said, describing it as a foundational layer that is beginning to reshape how enterprises operate. He drew parallels with the cloud computing boom, which helped make technology integral to almost every industry. AI, he said, is now driving a broader redesign of workflows and decision-making processes across organisations.

The company said its AI-related revenue is now close to $2.5 billion and has grown at a compound annual growth rate of more than 22% over the past four years.

TCS is currently working with clients across industries to build AI platforms and integrate AI capabilities into business processes. The company has also launched sovereign AI infrastructure for India.

CEO and MD K Krithivasan said TCS has delivered more than 5,000 AI engagements across industries. "95% of enterprises are in the early stage of the journey," Krithivasan said, describing AI as a potential growth multiplier over the medium to long term and a once-in-a-generation opportunity for technology services providers.

The company's management also outlined a future where AI systems become deeply embedded in physical operations. Chandrasekaran said TCS is already working with manufacturing companies on projects that combine AI systems with human expertise on factory floors and industrial processes.

He predicted that AI agents would become increasingly common across enterprise environments and said the company could eventually deploy digital workers at a scale comparable to its human workforce. "TCS might have equal number of AI workers as there are physical workers in three years," Chandrasekaran said.

The comments come after TCS reported FY26 revenue growth of 4.6% year-on-year, while operating and net margins reached their highest levels in four years.

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