'TCS not dependent on H-1B visas'

India’s largest information technology (IT) services provider Tata Consultancy Services (TCS) has been in the news for the past three months, first for laying off around 12,000 employees and more recently over the H-1B visa issue. In an interview with Shivani Shinde in Mumbai, Chief Executive Officer K Krithivasan discusses the layoffs, visa challenges, AI strategy, and the company’s next major focus on data centres. Edited excerpts:

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You mentioned that TCS performed well in the second quarter despite macro challenges, yet uncertainty persists. How do you see the next two quarters shaping up?

■ There is a small positive bias, as the number of deferrals — where projects are being paused — has come down slightly sequentially. Almost all verticals, except the consumer business, have turned positive. Across geographies, all except the UK have performed well. In the UK, we faced a specific situation in an insurance claim where the price per policy saw a steep decline. What's also making us confident is our big-bet strategy.

Almost all service lines are driving growth, particularly AI and data, albeit from a small base.

The recent US decisions on H-1B visas have significantly impacted the industry. What's your perspective on this environment, and what implications does it have for the largest IT services player?

■ We have 31,000 to 32,000 employees in the US, of whom only 11,000 to 12,000 are on H-1B visas, while the rest are on other types of visas. We have been progressively increasing local workforce participation, which will continue because the way of work has changed with new kinds of projects and AI coming into play, where you need to work closely with the customer and need different skill sets. It is not just about engineering skills anymore; there is a growing demand for creative thinking and prompt engineering skills. In FY26, we sent just 500 people from India to the US on H-1B visas, which means we can survive without them (H-1B visas). There is no dependence on H-1B visas.

But, for a long period, H1-B visas were part of not only the cost policy but also the retention policy...