Indian IT services companies have stepped up acquisitions over the past six months, driven less by scale alone and more by the need for skills, specialised capabilities and AI-led transformation. Industry data suggest over $4 billion worth of deals across H2 FY26 alone, spanning more than 10 acquisitions, with a clear tilt toward cloud, data and vertical expertise.
For instance, Tata Consultancy Services (TCS) acquired the US-based Coastal Cloud for about $700 million to deepen Salesforce and AI consulting capabilities, while Wipro agreed to buy Mindsprint in a $375 million deal bundled with a long-term services contract. Infosys, meanwhile, picked up healthcare and consulting assets to strengthen domain depth, and mid-tier players like Coforge have pursued larger, platform-led acquisitions.
The rationale, say industry analysts, is increasingly explicit in management commentary. Companies have emphasised that acquisitions are aimed at “capability-led growth” and “AI-first transformation”, rather than traditional headcount expansion.
According to Ashutosh Sharma, VP & Research Director, Forrester, these IT firms are using acquisitions to fast-track the capability built out.
“The market is evolving rapidly thanks to AI. Acquisitions have become the fastest way to buy time in a market that no longer grants it. Growth has shifted from horizontal IT services to domain depth, cloud-native platforms, AI, data engineering, and industry IP. Building these organically would take too long in a market where clients are consolidating their vendors to a select few and are demanding relevant capabilities that drive ROI for them,” he said.
He added that these acquisitions aren’t simply a response to the slowdown, but instead, companies are trying to bet on where growth will reappear first. While the slowdown over the last few years has made organic growth harder, M&A is more about reshaping future growth than replacing it. Firms are using acquisitions to move toward higher-margin, board-level conversations to offer AI-led transformation, SaaS integration, and industry-specific platforms, where spending is still happening.
different strategy
Meanwhile, Gaurav Vasu, CEO & Founder, UnearthInsight, highlighted that AI is prompting a different M&A strategy. Today, even smaller AI firms command premium valuations -- often higher than traditional services firms. Unlike cloud or ERP, AI requires proprietary models, data capabilities, and specialized talent, which is hard to build quickly in-house.
“Enterprises are actively seeking AI-led transformation, pushing IT firms to deepen their AI stack beyond partnerships. As a result, Indian IT is moving beyond incremental tuck-ins toward more deliberate, high-impact AI acquisitions, even if they are fewer in number, because these assets will define competitive positioning over the next decade,” he added.
Infosys MD & CEO Salil Parekh, post the company’s recent acquisition, commented that by bringing together Optimum’s provider experience with Infosys Topaz and Infosys Cobalt, the company is positioned to create a differentiated value proposition for healthcare providers. He also said that the company is comfortable with acquiring in different areas due to strong cash generation.
C Vijayakumar, CEO and MD at HCLTech, in his recent quarterly results commentary, said, ‘Rather than buying a scale, firms are buying missing pieces, which makes it easier to integrate and justify internally and to clients.’
Published on April 26, 2026