Indian IT firms race to staff forward AI engineers as talent scarcity drives costs

Published on 24 April 2026

Onsite AI specialists are scarce, and pricing is the new battleground

As AI deals get tougher, Indian IT companies are pushing “forward-deployed” engineers onsite to turn AI proposals into real products. Infosys and Cognizant are ramping up, but the talent pool is thin and costs are rising. Accenture remains ahead, leaving a high-stakes race: who builds the team first could decide which clients stay loyal.

Firms are hiring onsite forward-deployed engineers to move AI from pitch to product
Infosys and Cognizant are scaling, but forward talent is scarce
Higher costs and limited specialists are shaping competitive dynamics
Accenture’s lead raises the risk of client capture

#it services #tech costs #talent crunch #client competition #artificial intelligence

Read the full story at The Economic Times

This summarization was done by Beige for a story published on The Economic Times

Indian IT firms race to staff forward AI engineers as talent scarcity drives costs

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