AI will create more jobs than it displaces, says Microsoft India chief

Rajiv Kumar, Microsoft India Development Centre (IDC) Managing Director and President.Artificial Intelligence (AI) is expected to create more opportunities than it disrupts, and Indian engineers should focus on learning to work alongside the technology rather than worrying about job losses, Microsoft India Development Centre (IDC) Managing Director and President Rajiv Kumar said, according to PTI.In a blog post published on Thursday, Kumar said that the rapid pace of technological advancement is shortening the relevance of existing skills, making continuous learning and adaptability essential for the workforce.Referring to the World Economic Forum’s Future of Jobs Report 2025, he noted that 39 per cent of core job skills globally are expected to change by 2030.

In India, around 63 per cent of the workforce will require significant upskilling or reskilling by the end of the decade.“Virtually every major technology wave in history has ultimately created more opportunities than it destroyed.

The real question is not whether new jobs will exist but how ready we are to step into those roles,” said Kumar.He added that young engineers must develop the ability to continuously learn and adapt to emerging technologies and evolving job roles.Kumar said the discussion among engineering professionals is increasingly shifting from concerns about AI replacing jobs to finding ways to collaborate with the technology.

Drawing parallels with the rise of the internet in the mid-1990s, he argued that major technological shifts have historically generated new opportunities and industries.“New roles like AI trainers, agent specialists, AI security experts, and many more are already emerging across Indian companies,” he said.According to Kumar, employers are also moving toward skills-based hiring models, placing greater emphasis on an individual’s potential and learning ability rather than traditional qualifications.Citing Microsoft’s Work Trend Index 2026, he said most AI users globally reported that the technology had helped them focus on higher-value work and achieve outcomes that would have been difficult otherwise.

AI is increasingly being used as a “thought partner” for tasks such as analysis, problem-solving and creative thinking.“AI can help you code; it cannot decide your goals, understand your customer, or define what matters,” Kumar said, stressing that judgment, ethics, empathy and experience remain uniquely human strengths.Highlighting India’s position in the global technology ecosystem, he said the country combines the world’s second-largest engineering talent pool with strong digital ambitions and an ability to innovate at scale.Kumar pointed to the Microsoft India Development Centre in Hyderabad — the company’s largest research and development hub outside the United States — as an example of Indian teams driving global innovation rather than simply participating in it.