Every Indian Company is Starting to Look Like an AI Company
Pick any Indian company today, whether in the healthcare segment or the fashion industry — all of them have now become AI companies. For instance, e-commerce platform Myntra recently introduced FashionGPT which enables shoppers to search for specific outfits by typing text in a manner that closely resembles natural speech.
Even former founders are now venturing into AI as a service startups. Binny Bansal, co-founder of Flipkart, is set to launch a new AI-as-a-service startup. The startup is currently in stealth mode and aims to offer services in financial services, data science, and analytics, taking cues from outsourcing giants like Tata Consultancy Services Ltd. and Infosys Ltd. It aims to roll out products and services and begin marketing in the second half of 2024.
Similarly, Parag Agrawal, former CEO of Twitter before Elon Musk took over in late 2022, recently secured around $30 million in funding for his AI startup. The company focuses on developing software for creators of large language models.
AI Mantra of Indian Companies
“We believe that Paytm will have to become a completely AI company,” said Paytm chief Vijay Shekhar Sharma, at the recent earnings call. His 2024 to-do list for Paytm also includes ‘expanding AI-led customer care’ and ‘implementing personalised solutions using AI.’
In line with this, the company is already developing an AI system that will help financial institutions capture possible risks and frauds, Sharma shared in the payment company’s annual report for the financial year 2022-23.
Meanwhile, SaaS startup Zoho is developing its own LLMs and working on smaller models, based on 7 billion to 20 billion parameters, to solve specific domain problems for its customers, according to chief Sridhar Vembu. “We have found that smaller models are more effective for domain-specific problems,”said Vembu. Zoho currently offers Zia, its generative AI tool embedded across its software suite, including Zoho Writer, CRM, and SalesIQ.
The ride-hailing service Ola recently introduced Krutrim, touted as ‘India’s first full-stack AI’ solution. Ola Chief Bhavish Aggarwal said that Krutrim will be integrated into the Ola app to power chatbots that answer customer queries about fares, ride availability, booking status, and more, offering 24/7 support in multiple Indian languages.
On the other hand, telecom giant Reliance Jio is reportedly working on generative AI and plans to launch a ‘Bharat GPT.’ The company has reportedly partnered with the Indian Institute of Technology-Bombay to develop an India-first AI program. Jio, which offers products and services across the digital sector, including streaming apps and internet services, is also said to be working on an operating system for televisions.
The Adani Group, under the leadership of Gautam Adani, has established a partnership with a subsidiary of International Holding Co. based in the UAE to delve into AI and other technological avenues.
Zomato and Swiggy, the two biggest food delivery players in India, are actively exploring and implementing generative AI. Both platforms leverage AI to analyse user preferences, past orders, location, and real-time trends to suggest personalised food recommendations.
Moreover, Indian IT giants TCS, Infosys, Wipro, HCLTech, and LTIMindtree are offering large-scale generative AI solutions, primarily for enterprise domains like customer service, financial analysis, and supply chain optimisation. Pareekh Jain, CEO of EIIRTrend, predicts that around 2% of the revenue in the coming year will be generated directly through generative AI for Indian IT – 2024 is all about generative AI for Indian IT.
Exotel, a customer conversational platform and business-focused virtual telecom operator, recently unveiled ‘The House of AI’ and is targeting a 50% revenue growth by 2025. Overall, it wouldn’t be wrong to say that generative AI is rapidly becoming an essential tool across industries, much like the rise of big data and cloud computing.
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