Indian IT will grow to $350 bn by 2030: Kris Gopalakrishnan

The Indian information technology (IT) industry has shown remarkable resilience in the face of macroeconomic headwinds and is estimated to grow to $350 billion by 2030 from the current $245 billion, Infosys Ltd co-founder Kris Gopalakrishnan said.

Gopalakrishnan, who is also chairman of the vision group for IT in the southern state of Karnataka, was speaking at the inaugural of the 26th edition of the three-day Bengaluru Tech Summit 2023.

Rating agency ICRA Ltd had cautioned that the industry’s revenue growth is expected to slow down to 3-5% in fiscal 2024 due to “persistent macroeconomic uncertainty” and weak demand in the US and Europe.

“Last year, the industry grew around 9%. It is a $200 billion industry; it is expected to grow to $350 billion by 2030. This is a high-growth industry and this has continuously grown every year over the last several years,” Gopalakrishnan said at the event.

ChatGPT, GPT-4, and Generative AI were launched simultaneously last year, and since their introduction, they have emerged as the world’s most rapidly expanding technologies, Gopalakrishnan said.

However, emerging technologies with broad applications like these necessitate various interventions, he said, adding that arrival of these innovations has transformed every sector, industry, and application, “altering our interactions with technology, information, and intelligent systems.”

Wipro chairman Rishad Premji said the industry has achieved a remarkable milestone, growing fivefold to reach $245 billion in just 16 years, and now contributes 8% to the GDP, a significant increase from just 1% three decades ago.

He also mentioned that the IT sector currently employs more than 5 million individuals, with the number of jobs in this sector having doubled in the last decade and expected to double again in the coming decade.

Premji said the sector is on the brink of disruptive change and offers enormous opportunities.

India boasts the largest and youngest talent pool, along with a globally recognized and proven business model, he said, adding that India is experiencing an upswing in its long-term technology investment cycle, propelled by developments in new technologies such as generative AI, 5G, cloud computing, and sustainable technology.

The Bengaluru Tech Summit is an annual technology exhibition and is this year scheduled between 29 November and 1 December. This year, the theme of the summit, which brings together tech companies, startups, investors, and research labs from over 30 countries, is “Breaking Boundaries. The summit features a multi-track conference covering fintech, edtech, semiconductors, and biotechnology.