Infosys to hire 20,000 graduates amid global tech layoffs
What's the story
Infosys, one of India's leading IT services companies, has announced its plan to hire 20,000 college graduates in the fiscal year 2027. The announcement was made by CEO Salil Parekh at the World Economic Forum (WEF) annual meeting in Davos. This hiring plan is seen as a positive development at a time when the global tech industry has been facing layoffs.
Hiring trajectory
Hiring progress and future expectations
The report further highlights that Infosys has already recruited 18,000 graduates in the first three quarters of FY26. The company's net headcount grew by over 5,000 employees in Q3 FY26 alone. Parekh said that while some areas are witnessing compression, others are seeing growth. He added that the growth is slightly more than what they observe on the compression side.
AI impact
AI is driving new service demand across sectors
Infosys is witnessing new work in software development, customer service, and modernization of legacy applications as businesses adopt AI agents and multiple foundation models. Parekh explained that these are emerging areas of work even as the company sees some compression in existing work. He said, "There's a lot of (AI) agents being developed on different foundation models... There's work going on, for example, on customer service."
Salary hike
Entry-level salaries and AI-first capabilities
In December 2025, Infosys reportedly hiked entry-level salaries for freshers. The company is now offering compensation packages of up to ₹21 lakh per annum for specialized technology roles. This move comes as part of its strategy to ramp up hiring and strengthen its AI-first capabilities while attracting digitally native talent.
AI adoption
Client adoption of AI is moving beyond pilots
Parekh also emphasized that client adoption is moving beyond pilots in several pockets, with projects getting deployed at scale. He said "these are real projects. This is not proof of concept." The Infosys CEO added that 15 out of their 25 largest clients have chosen them as their AI partner, highlighting the growing importance and acceptance of artificial intelligence (AI) in various sectors.
Pricing strategy
Approach to AI-led delivery pricing models
When asked about the evolving pricing models for AI-led delivery, Parekh said that they are still in the early stages. He said, "We're already doing some of the pricing based on agents, pricing based on joint teams." More standard models could emerge over the next few quarters and years as these projects continue to blend human teams with AI agents.