BENGALURU: India's retail global capability centre (GCC) ecosystem is now 34% larger than the next five global peer markets combined, according to a TeamLease Digital report, even as companies face a shortage of experienced artificial intelligence (AI) talent and increasing competition for specialised skills.
The report, The Retail Pivot: Consumer GCCs Find Their India Edge, said India has 180 retail and consumer GCCs employing around 272,300 professionals, making it the largest retail GCC destination globally. It said India also leads peer markets in AI workforce penetration, with 5-7% of employees working in AI-enabled roles.
Despite the scale, the report said the sector faces a shortage of experienced AI professionals. It found that only 320 professionals with more than eight years of AI experience are available across all 180 retail GCCs, while more than half of the country's retail GCC AI talent is concentrated in Bengaluru.
AI workforce penetration has increased from 2.1% in 2022 to 4.8% in 2025 and is projected to reach 7.2% in 2026.
The report said hiring is increasingly shifting towards technology, customer, supply chain and data functions. These areas account for about 60% of the current workforce but are expected to generate more than 80% of hiring demand by 2028.
Technology and engineering demand is projected to increase from 25,140 roles in 2025 to 41,000 by 2028, while data and analytics is expected to be the fastest-growing function over the same period.
Retail GCCs are also hiring talent from outside the sector. According to the report, 90.2% of the 28,500 professionals hired over the past year came from industries such as IT services, product companies and business consulting, highlighting growing competition for digital talent.
The report said compensation is increasingly linked to specialised skills rather than experience alone. AI and machine learning professionals with three to six years of experience earn a median salary of Rs 46 lakh, about twice the broader market median, while those with six to 10 years of experience earn a median of Rs 68 lakh.
Commenting on the findings, Neeti Sharma, CEO, TeamLease Digital, said, "India's Retail GCC story has moved decisively past the conversation about scale. India is increasingly becoming the place where AI-led retail strategy gets built and owned, not just executed." She added that the limited pool of senior AI professionals and the concentration of talent in one city pose a capability risk for the sector's next phase of growth.
