Ganesh Kalyanaraman, Managing Director India and North America, Version 1,
After the U.S ‘tariff drama’, most global clients started talking to tech vendors and slowly opening up their purses now, observed Ganesh Kalyanaraman, Managing Director, India and North America, Version 1, an Irish firm that focuses on application modernisation, digital transformation, and AI.
“The global tech meltdown is real and there is clear uncertainty in the global market. However, post-tariff drama, we see clients talking to tech vendors and showing a willingness to open up their purses. It is a discretionary spend. That’s good news,’‘ he told The Hindu.
According to Mr. Kalyanaraman, global companies currently looking at a combination of things to cut costs. They want to consolidate all the current time and material and they are looking for a fixed-price engagement with productivity through AI. “They are also looking at ways and means to reduce their CAPEX spend and they are automating all manual work that can be automated,’‘ he observed.
One out of three clients is looking for AI-led services, he added.
On Version 1’s India expansion plan, Ganesh said the company has plans to build India as a prominent geography.
“The plan is to make India a prominent delivery centre in the next three years. This will include setting up an innovation lab in India, partnering with academia, and expanding delivery capabilities. The company aims to quadruple its India headcount to over 2,000 employees, in the next three years,’‘ he added.
Further commenting on market outlook, Mr, Kalyanaraman said, the AI as a service (AIaaS) market was expanding rapidly, with a projected market size anticipated to rise from about $ 20 billion in 2025 to $91 billion by 2030, featuring a CAGR of 35%.
Published – July 06, 2025 02:46 am IST
