Startups and small firms will drive India's job growth in the age of AI: Nandan Nilekani

Startups and emerging enterprise entities will lead labour market expansion in India as artificial intelligence (AI) changes corporate workforce structures, according to Infosys co-founder Nandan Nilekani. Addressing attendees at the Global Fintech Fest 2026, Nilekani outlined how technological deployment is altering employment patterns across industries, transferring job creation capacity away from established corporations and toward early-stage ventures. Large corporate organizations, operating with structured roles and standardized operational processes, face increased exposure to automation and workforce reduction, Nilekani explained. In contrast, smaller business entities maintain flexible organizational structures that present greater resistance to automated replacement due to the dynamic, non-standardized nature of their operational tasks. To address operational imbalances between market participants, asset tokenization mechanisms and AI tools offer an "opportunity to level the playing field between big and small" firms, Nilekani said. He described these digital tools as an additional infrastructure layer within India's digital financial network, designed to expand access to capital reserves, lending institutions, and commercial transaction markets for smaller enterprise units. The projected labour transition coincides with growth across India's domestic startup ecosystem. Data cited by Nilekani indicated the national startup market expanded from about 10,000 active companies in 2015 to 150,000 by 2025. Nilekani projected the total volume of operating startups in the country would reach 1,000,000 by 2035. To demonstrate practical implementation, Nilekani detailed three tokenization pilot initiatives currently operating across agriculture, trade logistics, and credit distribution. Nilekani identified regulatory frameworks and technological innovation as two primary institutional strengths for India's domestic economy, while encouraging market participants to "dream bigger”. Addressing the event's focal themes, Nilekani framed technological convergence as a fundamental transition in how economic operations function. "What struck me most is the choice of the theme for this year, AI and quantum. This is not a theme chosen for novelty. It is an idea whose time is now. Each of these technologies on its own would be significant. Together, converging as they are, they represent a shift in how value is created, verified and delivered in our economy," he said. Agnidev is a business journalist with over two years of reporting experience tracking the intersection of capital, policy, and corporate strategy in India.<br><br>He joined Mint in December 2025, after a stint at NDTV Profit (erstwhile BQ Prime). At Mint, Agnidev focuses on the high-stakes world of the Indian capital market, specialising in mergers and acquisitions, burgeoning IPOs, and the investment banking industry.<br><br>Backed by a rigorous, data-driven approach, Agnidev frequently breaks news on the valuation cycles, deal pipelines and listing strategies of India’s most prominent companies. His reportage offers deep dives into the operational health of market leaders across the corporate landscape, providing readers with a clear-eyed view of institutional growth.<br><br>He has reported on major issues like India's derivatives frenzy, IPO froth, the competitive quick commerce industry, the real-money gaming ban, and has broken investigative stories related to scandals such as IndusInd Bank's accounting manipulation and the Gensol-BluSmart fiasco.<br><br>As a reporter, he brings stories that ultimately affect your stock market investments, and tries to bring clarity and brevity in a field that is often filled with jargon and noise. Catch all the Business News, Market News, Breaking News Events and Latest News Updates on Live Mint. Download The Mint News App to get Daily Market Updates. Oops! Looks like you have exceeded the limit to bookmark the image. Remove some to bookmark this image.