New Delhi, April 24 -- Infosys Ltd. just delivered its fastest growth in three years. Revenue rose 4.57% to $20.16 billion, profits increased 4.9%, and the company beat analyst estimates by a comfortable margin. A genuinely strong fiscal. Yet, the stock fell 5% in pre-market trading. Why?

Because CEO Salil Parekh used one word that spooked everyone: "compression". AI foundation models are quietly hollowing out the kind of routine, high-volume tech work that Indian IT companies have built their empires on. Clients are automating faster, insourcing more, and spending cautiously amid geopolitical uncertainty.

Infosys isn't alone. Tata Consultancy Services Ltd. cut more than 23,000 jobs last year. Wipro's revenue shrank. Even HCL Technologi...