Vishaal Gupta, Global President, Enterprise Learning & Skills, and India Chair at Pearson Plc.

India’s demographic dividend could turn into a liability if the country fails to build AI-ready talent and foster homegrown innovation, according to Vishaal Gupta, Global President, Enterprise Learning & Skills, and India Chair at Pearson Plc.

Speaking to businessline, Gupta said India continues to enjoy a significant advantage through its large pool of young talent, but warned that the country risks being left behind if it does not address emerging skill gaps and create globally competitive AI companies.

National Challenge

“Today, if you look at the top AI companies globally, none of them is an Indian company. That needs to change,” he said, adding that India has the opportunity to emerge as an innovation powerhouse by developing AI solutions tailored to local challenges before scaling them globally.

While concerns around job losses due to AI persist, Gupta believes the technology will eventually create more jobs than it displaces. He pointed to emerging roles in AI safety, AI ethics and AI integration as examples of new opportunities that are beginning to take shape.

The comments come as Pearson doubles down on its enterprise learning and skills business, which the company has identified as one of its key growth drivers. The business grew 13 per cent in Q4 and has built a backlog worth hundreds of millions of dollars through partnerships with technology majors such as Microsoft, AWS, Google, Salesforce and IBM.

India is among Pearson’s top seven markets globally and is seeing strong demand for AI and digital-skilling programmes from multinational technology companies, Indian enterprises and government agencies.

Broadening Reach

According to Gupta, demand is extending beyond employee training to include skilling partners, customers and broader ecosystems. Pearson is working with multiple government bodies on AI skilling initiatives, including a formal partnership with Telangana’s AI Centre of Excellence. The company is also engaged with governments in Tamil Nadu, Andhra Pradesh, Delhi and Uttar Pradesh, alongside various central government entities, Gupta said.

“We are seeing very strong momentum in India across enterprises and governments alike,” Gupta said.

Published on June 11, 2026