IBLA 2025: India’s next decade of growth will be defined by technology, scale and talent, say business leaders

At the India Business Leaders Awards 2025 Jury Round, industry heavyweights from banking, law, healthcare and consulting agreed that India’s advantage lies in its ability to merge human talent with digital transformation. From AI in healthcare to fintech innovation and a record IPO wave, leaders said India’s growth story is no longer sector-specific — it’s system-wide. By CNBCTV18 From technology and finance to law and healthcare, every leader on the IBLA 2025 Jury Round panel echoed a shared conviction — that India’s next decade of growth will be powered by the fusion of technology, scale, and human capital. Arundhati Bhattacharya, President & CEO of Salesforce South Asia and Preetha Reddy, Executive Vice Chairperson of Apollo Hospitals underscored how AI can transform inclusion and access in India. Bhattacharya urged industries to “get excited, not fearful” about artificial intelligence, arguing that India must build frugal innovation models suited to its unique conditions rather than replicate resource-intensive Western approaches. Reddy reinforced that view from the healthcare lens, highlighting Apollo’s “Clinician’s Intelligence Engine” as an example of how AI can bridge the gap between demand and the shortage of trained medical professionals — not just for India, but for global healthcare systems facing capacity constraints. In the financial sector, CS Setty, Chairperson of SBI and PD Singh, CEO of Standard Chartered India and South Asia spoke of India’s digital transformation as a cornerstone of its economic leadership. Setty said scale and technology must go hand in hand, noting that digitalisation has allowed large banks like SBI to handle hundreds of millions of transactions daily. Singh added that initiatives such as Gift City and the internationalisation of the rupee demonstrate India’s growing influence in global financial flows, with the country exporting fintech innovation — not just adopting it. Zia J Mody, Managing Partner at AZB & Partners brought in the capital markets perspective, describing 2025 as the year when India truly emerged as the IPO factory of the world. With global investors turning to India amid geopolitical shifts, she pointed out that “the lack of an alternative market of this scale” gives the country an unmatched investment allure. Tying the discussion together, Rahul Jain, India Head of BCG argued that India’s economic story is “broad-based and resilient,” spanning manufacturing, consumption, technology, and indigenisation. As global supply chains diversify and resilience takes precedence over cost, India’s talent, reform momentum, and domestic demand make it a key player in the new global order. The common message: India is no longer a participant in global change — it’s becoming one of its primary architects, crafting a growth model that blends innovation with inclusion, and ambition with scale. Below is the excerpt of the discussion. Q: 2025 has been the year of artificial intelligence (AI). If you look at the kind of capex that big tech is putting into AI — $400 to $500 billion — the mind boggles at the kind of numbers these companies are talking about. In that context, what role and relevance will India have as this global pecking order takes shape? Bhattacharya: Well, one thing that India definitely has going for it is tech talent. We have a very deep pool of tech talent among Indians, and the skill levels here are in no way less than what you can find in the rest of the world. What we really need to go after, though, is to try and see how we can create a certain amount of technology here that is not as resource-rich as what is being done in the Western world. This is entirely possible, because in a matter of weeks, you saw how OpenAI and DeepSeek disrupted the whole story. It shows that there are ways of achieving the same outcomes without being so resource-intensive. There are ways of doing these things more frugally, and we need to look at models for enabling that. Having said that, when it comes to artificial intelligence, there is always an element of fear. People ask: should industries be worried? One thing I really want to tell industries is — you should not be worried, you should be excited. Because AI is not something that’s here now and will go tomorrow. It’s here to stay. In what form and how it evolves is something that will come in the future, but it is not going away. So, first and foremost — get excited about it. Lean into it. Second, we have to understand that the way the developed world looks at AI could be entirely different from the way we look at it. In the developed world, there is a lack of labour. So, what they really need are robotic agents to make up for that lost labour. In India, it’s not a paucity of labour — we have enough people. What we lack is the ability to take the best of services to the last mile. You look at 1.4 billion people, 600,000 villages, 8 million SMEs, how is it possible for us to enable all of these to reach their potential if we don’t use technology and AI? Preetha is from the healthcare industry, and she can tell you the kind of breakthroughs AI can bring for individuals is unimaginable if you try to do it in a brick-and-mortar way. For countries like ours, which already have such a large population, we have to look at using AI to enable our people to reach their potential. Being afraid of it won’t help. We need to internalise it and see how we can bring the best level of services right down to the last person, and ensure that everyone has an equal platform and an equal chance to realise their potential. Q: You said we shouldn’t be worried about AI, we should be excited. Let’s talk about how companies are looking at India. OpenAI is now offering ChatGPT free to the Indian market. Google Gemini is tying up with Jio, Perplexity is tying up with Bharti Airtel. Clearly, big tech is excited about India, correct? Bhattacharya: It is, it is. And one of the reasons for that is because the more you use these tools, the more data you create for them. Q: So, it’s the Indian data that they’re excited about? Bhattacharya: Absolutely. India is a great market to sell to. Where else will you find 1.4 billion people willing to consume? Look at the internet and mobile penetration in this country, the volume of goods bought both offline and online, and the number of UPI transactions. This is a great country of consumers. Everybody wants data from this country. Q: Preetha Reddy, let’s talk about the AI opportunity in healthcare — and whether India can take the lead in converging the use of AI in this sector. I know Apollo has its own intelligence engine that you’re hoping to leverage. Reddy: The problem in India is that we don’t have enough trained manpower. We have a large consumer base, but not enough people to service it. The obvious answer is to use AI and technology to help us navigate a lot of work that requires human skill. That’s where we can probably provide answers to the rest of the world. What we have created internally is what we call the Clinician’s Intelligence Engine, which you referred to. It has developed about 260 pathways so far. So, if someone comes into the emergency room and the staff are unsure what to do, the engine can at least guide them in the right direction. Within our healthcare systems — and not just ours — even public sector hospitals are growing rapidly. They’re investing in technology and AI. These answers will help the rest of the world. There are already pilots happening with the NHS and Indian institutions, including a small one with us, exploring how we can use AI. The NHS, for instance, faces a huge waiting list and a lack of capacity. AI could be the answer. It may be grown in India, but it can address many healthcare problems globally. If we work really hard and stay true to the ethics of how it should be used, we could really come up with a whole new model for healthcare delivery. Q: You believe India could write the playbook on using AI to address the paucity of healthcare professionals and backlogs — not just in India, but in the developed world as well. Reddy: Totally believe we can do it. Q: Mr. Setty, let’s move a little away from AI and talk about the financial sector. India has clearly led the way in digital payments. Is it time now for the physical sector to also lead the way? The government seems focused on the idea that size matters — and will matter even more going forward. Do you believe that in the next 10 to 15 years, consolidation will be the necessary imperative? Setty: Yes, consolidation has obviously helped public sector banks. There were 26 public sector banks — now reduced to 12 — and some of the scale benefits have already been realised. We must also remember that scale is important to leverage technology. If you don’t have scale, investment in technology becomes difficult, and returns on such investments are hard to realise. So, from that angle, going forward, there will definitely be some consolidation, though the timeline is uncertain. It’s also important to note that large banks like SBI have been adopting technology in a big way. Scale can only be handled through digitalisation. As Mrs Bhattacharya mentioned about UPI — SBI alone handles almost 24 crore transactions on UPI every day. You can’t handle that kind of volume unless you are constantly innovating and investing. From the perspective of such investments, further consolidation may be required. Q: You mentioned 26 down to 12. Many people are asking — and the DFS Secretary has also said — that we need Indian banks in the top 10 globally. When do you believe that’s possible, and do you believe SBI will take the lead again as a consolidator? Setty: Absolutely. If there’s one particular bank from the public sector space, it would be SBI. But there are private banks too — I don’t think the government means only public sector banks. They’re talking about the Indian banking system as a whole — at least a couple of Indian banks being globally ranked. There are two categories when we talk about top global banks — one is by assets, and SBI is eminently positioned there. The second is market capitalisation, where a couple of private banks already have good valuations. SBI is one of those that could join that club. So, from that point of view, SBI is well poised to be in the top category. Q: India has taken the lead in digital payments. Gift City is another government aspiration — to create stronger linkages between India and the world. I know Standard Chartered is focusing on that as well. What do you see as the next steps, and what are you most excited about? Singh: Firstly, I think there’s a very strong stamp of approval on India’s financial system. With a lot of investments coming in and innovation happening, it’s now incumbent on us to take that overseas. We’re seeing this with UPI, for example. Seven or eight countries already have UPI live. Around eight lakh cross-border UPI transactions happen, and about 1.5 million merchants are already onboarded internationally. We’re also seeing the internationalisation of the rupee, which has been accelerated by the establishment of Gift City. Gift City, by the way, is one of the few international financial centres — and India is lucky to have established one well in time. When you look at other international financial centres, what sets India apart is the foreign currency settlement system. We no longer have to wait for the US to wake up — we have 24x7 US dollar clearing already active among banks in Gift City. Gift City also has a sandbox and various innovations coming in, which will be a game-changer for how investments flow into the country. Q: Speaking of investments coming into the country — Zia, 2025 has been a seminal year where India is being branded as the IPO factory of the world. What do you make of this trend? How sustainable is it, and what kind of value unlock does it bring to the table? Mody: From a law firm’s perspective, I hope it goes on forever. But many of us thought the frothiness would cool down — but it hasn’t. In fact, you see listings every week. The attractiveness of India globally — to FIIs and FPIs — comes from two things: the energy of young companies going to market, and the lack of an alternative market of this scale. If there is global disaffection with China, then the only other large market to monetise and invest in is India. As Arundhati said, with 1.4 billion people, there’s a huge market here. It’s not just IPOs — even private equity allocations have tilted more towards India. South Asia funds have been hived off so that Indian deals don’t have to compete with global ones within investment committees. The hot sectors remain the same — healthcare, life sciences, education to some extent, all these startups promising one-minute, two-minute solutions, and of course, real estate — evergreen as ever. We’ve seen a very positive upsurge of activity this year. How much global tariffs and geopolitics will change things, we don’t know, but I’m quite confident we will continue to dance as we have danced effectively. Q: But Rahul, coming to you — speaking of dancing — which are the sectors that you believe are poised to dance into the future? When we talk about India being able to dominate globally, where do you have the most confidence? Jain: I think India is seeing a very wide array of opportunities. Unlike many economies, it’s not very narrow. If I can categorise sectors into three or four groups, the first group is the whole indigenisation group. If you look at one of the biggest pushes in recent times, it has been to reduce our import dependence. Everything that comes in — whether it is semiconductor chips, capital goods, or defence equipment — is getting localised. The intent is to build private sector strength and strong players in that space. So that, I think, is very well poised to grow. The second is the manufacturing piece in the global context, which appears to have hit some headwinds with the American situation. But in reality, it has forced us to take up reforms with renewed rigour. The FTAs that we are signing with different parts of the world open up wider opportunities. This is our chance because, for the first time globally, corporates are looking at resilience over cost competitiveness. It’s the first time people are realising the value of managing risks and diversifying their supply chains. India has to be a key player — it’s the only place with such a strong talent base and such a young, capable manufacturing population. That bodes well for us in the global context, as long as we continue to remain cost-competitive and R&D-driven. The third is anything based on India’s consumer base. With 1.4 billion people — not just growing in number but also moving up the income pyramid toward an “income diamond” — people are consuming more as they get richer and affordability increases. We are seeing growth across everything from basic healthcare to accessories, education, and aspirational consumption. Urbanisation is also driving this trend. This is the staple, base-case growth story for the Indian economy, and it’s a big part of the puzzle. And fourth — last but not least — is everything tech-related. With the talent base we already have, and in some ways with the H-1B visa situation possibly helping us retain more talent in the country, we could see greater innovation and investment. We’ve already done this well in the context of IT services and the GBS wave. But with the AI wave coming, it could create a whole new group of industries — which could be great for us in the future. Watch accompanying video for entire discussion. Check out our in-depth Market Coverage, Business News & get real-time Stock Market Updates on CNBC-TV18. Also, Watch our channels CNBC-TV18, CNBC Awaaz and CNBC Bajar Live on-the-go!