AI Jobs in India: GCC Hiring Shifts to AI, Data and Cybersecurity as Overall Tech Demand Falls 3.5%

AI jobs in India are now driving hiring at the country's global capability centres, even as overall technology recruitment slows. Quess Corp said on 5 November 2026 that demand for artificial intelligence, data and cybersecurity specialists rose sharply in July to September, while total tech hiring demand across India's global capability centres fell 3.5 per cent quarter on quarter.

The findings come from the staffing firm's India GCC Tech Talent Landscape Q2 FY27 report. Global capability centres, known as GCCs, are the India-based technology and operations units of multinational companies. The report shows their hiring is splitting in two: routine technology roles are shrinking, while specialist AI roles keep growing.

AI jobs in India: what the Quess report found

Artificial intelligence, data and cybersecurity together accounted for 30.3 per cent of technology hiring demand across India's GCCs in July to September, up from 25.8 per cent. Demand for AI, data and analytics professionals grew by about 14 per cent quarter on quarter, the fastest of any job category, while demand for cybersecurity and risk management professionals rose by 12 per cent.

AI, data and analytics alone made up 19.7 per cent of total demand, up from 16.7 per cent, the report said. That shift came even as overall hiring demand fell 3.5 per cent, a sign that centres are becoming more selective rather than stopping hiring.

Kapil Joshi, chief executive for IT staffing at Quess Corp, called it a recalibration. "Q2 FY27 was a recalibration quarter for India's GCCs. Hiring demand changed by -3.5% quarter on quarter, but the skills mix moved firmly toward AI, data and cyber resilience," he said.

Which roles are growing, and which are shrinking

The split is sharp. Software and digital engineering roles saw demand fall 11 per cent, while IT service management and digital operations recorded a 10 per cent fall. Telecom and networks saw the sharpest decline of any sector, at 24 per cent, followed by manufacturing and industrial at 9 per cent, banking, financial services and insurance at 8 per cent, and professional services and consulting at 2 per cent.

Quess Corp said the slowdown fits the usual cycle of global hiring, which peaks at the start of the calendar year and eases towards year end. But the report also points to a longer change: centres are using AI tools to raise productivity, cutting demand for routine coding, testing and support work while raising demand for people who can build, deploy and secure AI systems.

The same pattern is showing up elsewhere. A Robert Half survey found 32 per cent of employers that cut a role because of AI later rehired for the same or a similar role, as the AI layoffs reversal figures show. The GCC numbers suggest the rehiring is landing in specialist roles, not in the generalist posts that were cut.

The skills gap behind the shift

The report estimates a talent supply gap of 38 to 42 per cent in AI, data and analytics, and of 30 to 35 per cent in cybersecurity. Employers want far more specialists than the market can supply, which is why demand for those roles keeps rising even while overall hiring falls.

That gap is also redrawing the map of GCC jobs. Coimbatore recorded around 30 per cent quarter-on-quarter growth in GCC tech hiring, the report said, as centres look beyond Bengaluru and Hyderabad to Tier-2 cities for talent and lower costs. Jobseekers outside the big metros may find more openings closer to home.

For workers already in technology roles, reskilling is no longer optional. New research from Careerminds found 92 per cent of HR professionals believe their own staff could be retrained for AI roles, yet most firms still hire from outside, as the AI reskilling gap figures show. The GCC report points the same way: employers are paying for proven AI, data and cybersecurity skills, and the fastest way in is to show them.

What this means for jobseekers

Anyone targeting AI jobs in India should focus on the three areas the report highlights: AI and data analytics, cybersecurity and risk management, and supporting engineering work. A portfolio that shows real work, such as a model built and deployed or a system secured, carries more weight than a certificate alone. The remote AI roles listed on Growentix show the range of posts open now, and many are open to applicants outside the big cities.

Jobseekers should apply through the employer's own careers page or a known staffing firm, and never pay for a job, a training place or a placement. No genuine employer asks a candidate to pay to apply, and any message asking for money for a GCC role should be treated as a scam.

Quess Corp said centres will need to combine specialist hiring with reskilling and internal mobility as they expand. For jobseekers, that means two doors are open at once: new AI roles posted externally, and retraining routes inside the company they already work for. The workers who move first, with skills they can prove, are the ones the numbers favour.

At a glance	Details
Report	Quess Corp, India GCC Tech Talent Landscape Q2 FY27, released 5 November 2026
Overall GCC tech hiring	Down 3.5 per cent quarter on quarter
AI, data and cybersecurity	30.3 per cent of GCC tech hiring demand, up from 25.8 per cent
AI, data and analytics demand	Up about 14 per cent; 19.7 per cent of total demand
Cybersecurity and risk demand	Up 12 per cent
Sharpest sector fall	Telecom and networks, down 24 per cent
Talent supply gap	38 to 42 per cent in AI, data and analytics; 30 to 35 per cent in cybersecurity
Fastest-growing city	Coimbatore, about 30 per cent quarter-on-quarter growth

Sources: Business Standard at https://www.business-standard.com/industry/news/gcc-tech-hiring-falls-3-5-in-q2fy27-as-firms-turn-selective-quess-report-126110501719_1.html on the hiring figures; YourStory at https://yourstory.com/enterprise-story/2026/11/gccs-increase-hiring-of-techies-with-ai-data-cybersecurity-skills on the 30.3 per cent share and supply gap; India Education Diary at https://indiaeducationdiary.in/ai-data-and-cybersecurity-drive-three-in-ten-gcc-tech-hiring-requirements-quess-report/ on the sector figures and Coimbatore growth.