Why Deep-Tech Fascinates Corporate Leaders

CEOs face multiple challenges in migrating to next-generation technologies in a transforming world.

- P.B. Jayakumar

“BREAKTHROUGH technologies and innovation have always been the greatest wealth creators for nations, as well as for corporates,” Reliance Industries (RIL) chairman Mukesh Ambani said at the recent annual general meeting (AGM) of shareholders.

In another instance, Larsen & Toubro (L&T) chairman and MD S.N. Subrahmanyan was surprised when in 2015, he was directed by the then CMD A.M. Naik to go to the U.S. and Europe to learn ‘IT’. By that time, Naik had identified Subrahmanyan as a potential future leader for the conglomerate. SNS, a civil engineer, was focusing only on the infra and construction business since the start of his career with L&T. He toured the U.S. and Europe for two years, met IT CEOs and CTOs and came back to implement Internet of Things (IoT) and automation across the flagship engineering & construction (E&C) business. Now more than 14,000 devices and machines are connected to L&T’s command centre in Mumbai and SNS can monitor real-time project-wise execution at any location. Normally L&T executes about 1,000 projects at a time.

“Margins are thin in the construction business globally. Higher efficiency and better utilisation of machines and manpower with automation can result in better margins, monitoring, and faster project execution,” Subrahmanyan said in an earlier interaction with Fortune India. In FY24 alone, L&T’s EBITDA margin in the infrastructure business was 6.2%, much better than the global industry average of 2-3%.