Wipro’s Chief Strategist and CTO Hari Shetty frames AI as a major opportunity for the IT services industry, predicting that AI adoption will boost demand for software service providers rather than shrink it.

He argues that AI-literate engineers will be essential and that firms will increasingly partner with clients who deeply understand their domain processes to shepherd the move to autonomous enterprises.

Shetty contends AI will create more jobs than it displaces, pointing to a broader shift toward autonomous enterprises that require close collaboration between IT services firms and their clients to implement transformative solutions.

The report was first published on February 24, 2026.

Overall, the executive portrays AI as a dominant, long-term force driving business growth and strategic services for the IT services industry.

World Economic Forum estimates cited by Shetty indicate AI could create about 170 million jobs globally while displacing around 92 million, with India’s IT sector seeing strong demand for skills in model training, data curation, and responsible AI.

Additional WEF projections cited suggest AI could generate roughly 170 million new jobs worldwide while disrupting about 92 million roles, with India’s IT sector seeking expertise in model training, data management, and ethical AI.

Based on World Economic Forum projections, AI could create about 170 million new jobs globally while displacing around 92 million existing roles, with India’s IT sector in strong demand for specialized AI skills such as model training, data management, and responsible AI development.

Shetty argues AI is a transformational opportunity on par with electricity and the internet, and that current discussions overemphasize automation at the expense of the broader shift to autonomous enterprises.

He emphasizes that AI represents the single biggest opportunity for the IT services industry, with scale comparable to foundational tech eras; the focus should move beyond automation to structural business-model change.

He expects AI to shape the next decade to two decades of technology spending, signaling a long-run, dominant driver for IT services.

AI is described as a transformative shift akin to electricity or the internet, with potential to reshape technology spending over the coming decade or two.