Outsourcing employees are at maximum risk of getting impacted by AI Rajesh Namibiar

Hyderabad: According to Nasscom chairman Rajesh Nambiar, workers in the business process outsourcing (BPO) sector are at risk of being replaced by generative artificial intelligence.

Nambiar, also the chairman and managing director of Cognizant's India unit, mentioned this during a seminar in Pune. He highlighted that the $48.9 billion BPM (business process management) industry has evolved significantly from managing simple processes.

There are concerns about AI's impact on jobs in India's over $250 billion tech sector, a major contributor to the country's GDP.

In the software services industry, Nambiar mentioned that professionals not using AI in their work are at risk of replacement by those utilizing AI. Many IT services companies are investing in training their workforce in AI-related skills to meet future client demands. Nambiar emphasized the importance of human ability to leverage AI effectively.

Generative AI is expected to impact white-collar jobs more than previous technologies aimed at automating lower-end tasks. Nambiar noted that jobs such as equity analysts or statisticians could be affected. He described Gen AI as "overhyped" in the short term but underestimated in its longer-term impact.

Looking ahead to 5-10 years, Nambiar believes AI, particularly Gen AI, will have a significant impact. He called Gen AI a great equalizer, suggesting that its benefits are higher when human capabilities are lower.