Archive · 20 Aug 2026
India’s GCCs Become Global Hubs For Innovation And AI
Global companies set up special offices in India called global capability centres, or GCCs.
These offices used to do mainly routine and lower-cost work.
A new Zinnov report says many now design products, conduct research, and build advanced technology.
Most GCCs created since FY21 started with these higher-value responsibilities.
Newer centres are also becoming mature more quickly than older ones.
Artificial intelligence is helping speed up this change.
India has more than 1,200 GCCs with AI or machine-learning capabilities.
The report says future growth will depend on specialised workers, strong infrastructure, and an environment that supports important global work.
Zinnov says 96% of Indian GCCs established since FY21 began with product, R&D, or engineering mandates.
Newer GCCs are reaching maturity in less than five years, compared with five to 10 years for many older centres.
Routine and commodity work has declined, while frontier R&D has expanded across India’s GCC ecosystem.
India has more than 1,200 GCCs with AI/ML capabilities, and generative and agentic AI represent 52% of use cases.
GCCs are increasingly hiring for specialised roles combining AI engineering, domain expertise, product thinking, and leadership.
- Who
- India’s global capability centres (GCCs), global companies, and the specialised professionals working in them.
- What
- GCCs are shifting from routine cost-centre functions toward product ownership, frontier R&D, AI, and strategic decision-making.
- When
- The report compares centres established between 2002 and 2015 with those set up since FY21; it describes current AI and GCC trends.
- Where
- India.
- Why
- Global companies are assigning India more complex work, while AI and the availability of specialised talent are supporting the expansion.
- Report source
- Zinnov
- Newer GCC mandates
- 96% of GCCs established since FY21 began with product, R&D, or engineering mandates.
- Maturity timeline
- Centres established between 2002 and 2015 took five to 10 years to mature; those set up since FY21 are reaching maturity in less than five years.
- AI-enabled GCCs
- India has more than 1,200 GCCs with AI/ML capabilities.
- Generative and agentic AI
- These technologies account for 52% of AI use cases in Indian GCCs.
- AI/ML professionals
- India has around 550,000 AI/ML professionals, with roughly half working in GCCs.
- Frontier R&D
- Nearly half of India’s GCCs have a share of frontier work comparable to or higher than their headquarters.