AI vs Jobs: Why India Is Creating More Jobs Than It Loses

For years, artificial intelligence has been presented as a threat to human jobs. From chatbots replacing customer-service workers to automation entering offices and factories, the fear has been simple: AI will take away more jobs than it creates.

But India’s experience so far tells a different story.

According to a Nomura report, India lost around 31,911 jobs between 2022 and July 2026, while the country created 83,100 AI-related jobs during the same period.

That does not mean AI is harmless for workers. Instead, it shows that the nature of work is changing faster than the total number of jobs is disappearing.

The AI Job Story Is Not What Many Expected

The headline numbers are striking.

For every job lost in India during the period, significantly more AI-related jobs were created. AI has therefore acted not only as a job destroyer but also as a new source of employment.

The bigger question is not simply “Will AI take our jobs?”

The more important question is:

“Who will get the new jobs created by AI?”

That is where the real challenge begins.

Chatbots Are Taking Over Routine Work

In India, AI has so far made its biggest impact on routine and support-based tasks.

AI chatbots can handle basic customer queries, generate routine responses, process information and perform several repetitive tasks within seconds.

But many core functions still require human judgement, creativity, communication and decision-making.

This means AI is currently replacing parts of jobs rather than entire professions.

A worker who once spent eight hours doing repetitive tasks may increasingly be expected to use AI tools and focus on more complex work.

The Biggest Warning Sign Is for Freshers

While the overall employment numbers may look encouraging, there is one group that could face greater pressure: freshers.

The Nomura report indicates that hiring of entry-level workers has declined, while demand for experienced professionals has increased.

This creates a difficult situation for young graduates.

Traditionally, companies hired freshers, trained them and gradually gave them more responsibilities. But if AI can perform some of the basic tasks that entry-level employees traditionally handled, companies may have less incentive to hire large numbers of inexperienced workers.

This could create an unusual problem:

Young people may need experience to get a job, but AI may reduce the number of jobs where they traditionally gained that experience.

India Is Turning AI Into an Employment Opportunity

India's numbers are particularly significant when compared with other major Asian economies.

Across Asia, 130,648 AI-related jobs were created during the period under review. Around 90% of these jobs were connected to the technology sector.

At the same time, the region recorded 70,644 layoffs, with around 60% of those affected working in financial services.

India, however, recorded a much stronger balance between AI-related job creation and layoffs.

How Countries Compare

Country	Layoffs	AI-related Jobs
India	31,900	83,100
South Korea	10,400	2,600
China	9,800	28,900
Singapore	4,100	1,100
Malaysia	1,300	1,400

India therefore stands out as the country where AI-related job creation has significantly exceeded layoffs.

But Quantity Is Not the Same as Quality

There is another side to the numbers.

Creating 83,100 AI-related jobs does not automatically mean that every worker who loses a job because of automation can move into one of those new positions.

AI-related jobs often require specialised skills such as programming, data analysis, machine learning, cloud computing, cybersecurity and AI operations.

A worker whose job disappears may not have these skills immediately.

That creates a skills gap between the jobs being lost and the jobs being created.

India’s Real Test Begins Now

The next phase of India's AI story will not be decided simply by how many jobs AI creates or destroys.

It will depend on whether India can reskill millions of workers fast enough.

Universities, colleges, training institutions and companies will have to prepare workers for an economy where AI becomes part of everyday work.

For students, this means learning AI tools may become as important as learning traditional technical skills.

For companies, it means training existing employees rather than relying entirely on new hiring.

And for policymakers, the challenge will be to ensure that the AI revolution does not create a wider divide between workers with digital skills and those without them.

The Real Revolution May Be Inside the Job

The biggest lesson from India's experience so far is that AI may not immediately create a “jobless future.”

Instead, it could create a future where the same job requires a completely different set of skills.

A journalist may use AI for research.
A lawyer may use it to analyse documents.
An accountant may use it to automate routine calculations.
A teacher may use it to personalise learning.
A software engineer may use AI to write and test code.

The human worker may remain — but the way that worker works will change.

The Question India Should Be Asking

The debate over AI should therefore move beyond “AI versus jobs.”

The more important debate is about AI, skills and opportunity.

If India can train its young population to work alongside AI, the technology could become a major employment multiplier.

But if skills fail to keep pace with technology, the same AI revolution could make entry into the job market increasingly difficult for millions of young Indians.

AI may not be taking India's jobs yet. But it is certainly changing the rules of getting one.