Mumbai, Feb. 26 -- Heads turned when HCL Technologies Ltd chief executive C. Vijayakumar said artificial intelligence would bring a "painful transition" during a fireside chat at the Nasscom Technology and Leadership Forum 2026 on 24 February. Some in the audience nodded in agreement; others looked up from their phones towards the podium at Fairmont Mumbai.

"I think I would say this: This transition is different. it is going to be painful because it really involves people," said Vijayakumar.

That summed up the mood at the NTLF's 34th edition, held on 23-24 February, which drew around 1,000 executives from IT services, customer support, AI, software products and engineering firms. Amid the networking, the hope that AI would pay off in th...