Around 35,000 tech jobs may be eliminated this year as India's IT sector undergoes AI shift

Around 35,000 technology jobs could be eliminated in India this year through a pattern of 'silent layoffs' — a quiet but sweeping restructuring driven by the rapid adoption of artificial intelligence across the IT sector, according to a Times of India report. Unlike the dramatic, announced layoff rounds seen at global tech giants, these job losses are unfolding through reduced hiring, non-renewal of contracts, and the gradual replacement of human roles with AI-powered tools and automation platforms.

India's IT majors — which collectively employ millions of engineers and account for a substantial share of the country's export earnings — are at the centre of this shift. Companies are increasingly deploying AI coding assistants, automated testing tools, and generative AI platforms to handle work that previously required large teams of entry- and mid-level software engineers. The result is that firms are delivering comparable output with leaner headcounts, reducing the need for the mass campus hiring that once defined the sector.

The impact is being felt most acutely by junior and mid-level professionals, particularly those in roles centred on routine coding, testing, and business process work. Freshers who entered the industry expecting a traditional career ladder are finding fewer rungs to climb. Industry observers warn that without rapid upskilling in AI, data science, and cloud-native technologies, a significant cohort of IT workers risks being sidelined.

The structural shift also raises broader questions for India's economy: the IT sector has long been a reliable engine of middle-class employment and urban consumption. A sustained shrinkage in headcount, even if quiet, could ripple through housing, consumer spending, and policy planning in the years ahead.