BPO CALLING AI

The first of a two-part series looks at how India's $54 billion BPO sector is being rewired by artificial intelligence and Agentic Al

- SHELLEY SINGH

The $54 billion business process outsourcing (BPO) industry — long known for its human capital advantage and operational scale — is undergoing a transformation more profound than any seen since its start almost three decades ago.

This time, the disruption is not being driven by headcount, but by algorithms.

Artificial intelligence (AI) and its more autonomous cousin, Agentic AI, which can act independently and make decisions without constant human intervention, are rapidly reshaping the architecture of global outsourcing, redefining not only how services are delivered, but what services are even needed.

It’s not about replacing humans — it’s about augmenting human capabilities. “We are moving beyond generic AI to building domain-specific intelligent AI solutions,” said Sanjeev Vohra, chief technology and innovation officer at Genpact, the $4.77 billion business and technology services major. “We are integrating domain-specific intelligent agents into business operations that adapt, learn and optimise in real time,” he added.

From cost arbitrage to AI edge

BPOs have been synonymous with cost-cutting strategies of global enterprises. Companies, spanning Fortune 2000 majors including GE, Amex, Bank of America, Citibank, JP Morgan, Prudential, Capital One, Pfizer, and hundreds of others, have banked on low-cost, high-quality talent from India to deliver a gamut of services - from customer support to account reconciliation, from analytics to mortgage processing.

Now, this industry of 1,000-plus companies, which Nasscom estimates is worth $54 billion and employs around 2 million, is morphing into intelligent AI-driven cognitive ecosystems. Automation, analytics, and empathy now coexist in tightly integrated systems. Routine processes—from invoice reconciliation to customer onboarding—are being handled by intelligent bots that require little to no human supervision.