Why Global Capability Centres (GCCs) are the next AI hotspot

By Aditya Joshi, COO, SA Technologies

From Back-Office to Braintrust

Not long ago, India’s Global Capability Centres (GCCs) were simply backroom engines—managing payroll, IT help desks, or processing data to save global companies time and money. Fast forward to today, and these same centers are at the heart of transforming how the world’s biggest businesses invent, experiment, and scale with artificial intelligence.

India is now home to more than 1,700 GCCs, which employ nearly 1.9 million professionals. These centers have quietly shifted from checking boxes to imagining what’s next. Today, instead of following orders, they help global firms dream up new products, overhaul business models, and set the pace in AI adoption.

How the GCCs Got Here: The Quiet Revolution

The evolution wasn’t sudden, but it’s profound. In the late ’90s, GCCs meant cost-cutting. In the 2010s, cloud and automation let them ...