The youth of India have a new coworker: AI

Young workers in India have a new colleague: AI October 17, 2026 Across India, young workers are increasingly turning to artificial intelligence (AI) to speed up routine tasks, whether it is researching news, translating texts, analyzing business data, or classifying legal documents. But this technology can make mistakes. And relying too much on it carries risks. A faster way to work Journalist Farah Kazmi, 28, who works for a news portal in New Delhi, used AI to report on the rules governing stray animals and feeding them in fenced communities, a topic that was relevant in the country. She asked an AI model to find the latest Supreme Court guidelines, previous court rulings, and recent cases of dog bites. "Since it can take a lot of time to search Google for specific articles on court rulings, previous judgments, or recent dog bite cases, I asked the AI to find them for me," Kazmi told DW. It provided her with a starting point for relevant articles and cases, which she then read and checked herself. She also uses AI to translate texts from English to Hindi for the news team and Hindi to English quotes. But the translations need careful review, Kazmi said, pointing out that in one case, the AI interpreted the name "Suraj" as "sun" and changed the meaning of the sentence. "Before using AI, I mainly relied on Google Translate. It was more literal and didn't always understand the context. The AI offers a much better and more context-based translation, although it still needs to be reviewed and corrected," she explains. AI has not fundamentally changed journalism, which still involves talking to people and reporting from the ground, Kazmi stressed. "Ultimately, I see AI as a tool that helps in research and saves time, but verification and real coverage must still be done by the journalist," she said. Yajatt Misra, 28, head of business strategy and international markets at Kanoria Chemicals and Industries, uses AI to analyze data, summarize large volumes of information, prepare drafts, and structure ideas. He also uses it to convert financial and business information from different sources into presentations for management. "Things like summarizing information, preparing first drafts, analyzing data, and preparing presentations now take less time," he told DW. He explains that the challenge is knowing when to trust the result. AI can lose business context or err in details, so its numbers, logic, and conclusions need to be checked. "There is less need to spend time on repetitive tasks and more focus on analysis, problem-solving, and providing useful information to the business," he concluded. "A junior colleague" with limitations Rakshanda Deka, a 30-year-old lawyer, uses AI to organize large sets of client documents chronologically or thematically and produce a first list of important dates. Some systems link the information to the original documents so that lawyers can check the source. AI can also help prepare standard applications and requests by using the lawyer's own format and style. "If used sensibly and without outsourcing the underlying legal reasoning, the AI is basically like having a sincere junior colleague," Deka told DW. But AI can generate false information when presenting it with complete confidence, which makes human verification essential. "The AI often gives you false information disguised as fact, in fact, with a lot of confidence. That is why it is essential that you review everything," she said. Deka is also worried because "many of the youngest lawyers are starting to use AI as a substitute for themselves," she said. Widespread use of AI The use of AI is very widespread among young Indians, and a Deloitte survey this year revealed that 93% of Gen Z respondents and 95% of millennials surveyed used AI in their daily work. Dimple Khubchandani, founder of the recruitment company Synoverge Consultants, told DW that employers are increasingly looking for young professionals who can think critically, solve problems, and review AI-generated work, rather than just performing basic research or writing. "AI is not necessarily eliminating entire job categories, but rather creating more agile teams and raising expectations," she stated. A marketing agency that could have hired four junior writers, for example, could now hire one to use AI in the initial drafts, leaving more time to edit, refine the tone, and shape the strategy. "AI is raising the basic expected capacity of employees from day one," she added. A changing job market Shrijay Sheth, co-founder of LegalWiz.in, an online legal service, observes the change in the entire economy. "The impact of AI on job profiles is not a forecast; it is already a reality," he stated to DW. "From basic research to strategy, operations, marketing, design, and development, AI is changing the way work is done." In software development, Sheth adds, developers spend less time writing code from scratch and more time monitoring, testing, and perfecting the results generated by AI. "Business acumen, product and problem-solving skills, along with the ability to work with AI platforms, are valued more than mere technical ability to work with any particular programming language," he stated. What the numbers show The issue of what happens to entry-level work is increasingly difficult to ignore. A 2025 report from NITI Aayog, the Indian government's public policy think tank, cites data from the Centre for Advanced Studies of India suggesting that more than 60% of formal sector jobs could be susceptible to automation by 2030, especially in new technologies and business process services. It also warns about a slowdown in the hiring of entry-level software engineers and identifies junior quality control and support positions as the most vulnerable. "Increased productivity and job loss are real," Sheth noted. Deka believes that lawyers will increasingly be distinguished by how rigorously they review AI work. "I believe the differentiation comes more and more from the thoroughness of post-AI verification and confirmation," she assured. Don't let the algorithm hide the news. 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