Infosys-Anthropic pact reignites question: Turning AI risk into opportunity for Indian IT? – The Times of India

Shares of Infosys surged as much as 5 per cent to Rs 1,430.95 on the BSE on Tuesday after the IT major announced a strategic collaboration with Anthropic, offering relief to investors worried about the disruptive impact of artificial intelligence on traditional software services.The stock rally marks a sharp reversal for Infosys, which had been under pressure amid fears that generative AI could render conventional IT outsourcing and software services obsolete.

Claude models to be integrated with Topaz AI platform

Under the partnership, Anthropic’s Claude models, including Claude Code, will be paired with Infosys’s proprietary Topaz AI platform. The collaboration will focus on sectors such as telecommunications, financial services, manufacturing and software development.“There’s a big gap between an AI model that works in a demo and one that works in a regulated industry — and if you want to close that gap, you need domain expertise,” said Dario Amodei, CEO and co-founder of Anthropic, as quoted by ET.“Infosys has exactly that kind of expertise across important industries: telecom, financial services, and manufacturing,” he added, reported ET.Infosys CEO Salil Parekh said the company sees AI unlocking six new service lines: AI strategy and engineering, agentic legacy modernisation, data readiness, process reimagination, physical AI and AI trust.“AI is not just transforming business — it is redefining the way industries operate and innovate,” Parekh said, as per ET.The company estimates a $300–$400 billion market opportunity by 2030 and is positioning itself to capture a share of that emerging demand.

Focus on agentic AI and legacy modernisation

At the core of the collaboration is agentic AI — systems capable of independently executing multi-step tasks such as processing insurance claims, generating and testing code, or running compliance reviews, rather than merely responding to prompts.Using tools such as the Claude Agent SDK, Infosys plans to build AI agents that can operate persistently across complex enterprise workflows.Legacy modernisation, historically a major revenue stream for Indian IT firms, will also be a key focus area. The two companies aim to combine their platforms to accelerate migration away from aging infrastructure.The partnership will begin with a dedicated Anthropic Center of Excellence focused on the telecom sector, before expanding to financial services, manufacturing and other verticals.

Analysts see relief, but flag open questions

Market participants viewed the development as a positive signal for the Indian IT sector, which has faced sustained concerns over AI-led disruption.“This development is encouraging, as it suggests that next-generation AI applications are unlikely to disrupt Indian IT companies’ business models to the extent initially feared,” said Vinod Nair, head of research at Geojit Investments, as quoted by ET.“Instead, these solutions are expected to be incorporated into both existing and new projects, which should help ease concerns around long-term business sustainability,” he added.However, Nair cautioned that uncertainties remain around deal sizes, pricing evolution and the net margin impact once employee cost efficiencies are balanced against productivity gains. He described the sector’s outlook for FY27-28 as “muted compared with the strong performance of the past two to three years,” though subdued valuations may present re-entry opportunities for long-term investors.Sumit Pokharna of Kotak Securities called the collaboration “definitely a step in the right direction and the need of the hour.”“They need governance, transparency, compliance, reliability, and security,” he said, referring to regulated industries’ AI adoption requirements, effectively underscoring the value proposition Infosys is now pitching, reported ET.

Repositioning Indian IT in the AI era

The broader significance of the announcement extends beyond a single partnership. Indian IT firms have spent nearly two years defending against investor concerns that generative AI could compress headcount, shrink project scopes and erode the labour-arbitrage model that powered sector growth.The Infosys-Anthropic deal represents a deliberate attempt to reposition Indian IT not as a casualty of the AI wave, but as a crucial intermediary between cutting-edge AI models and the compliance-heavy, operationally complex reality of global enterprises.Whether this strategic pivot translates into sustained deal flow, improved pricing power and stronger margins will depend on execution. For now, however, the market appears willing to give Infosys the benefit of the doubt, as reflected in Tuesday’s sharp rally.(Disclaimer: Recommendations and views on the stock market, other asset classes or personal finance management tips given by experts are their own. These opinions do not represent the views of The Times of India)