Welcome and Setup

Indian IT Always Pivoted

ChatGPT Changes Everything

The Pyramid Model Origins

Culture Clash With AI Talent

Scale Model Under Threat

Startups and Product Mindset

 Risky Shift to Outcomes

Public Market Pressure

Closing Credits 

Indian IT built its empire on one formula: throw armies of low-cost engineers at repeatable work, and scale relentlessly. That formula survived Y2K, the dot-com crash, and cloud computing. But AI attacks the model’s foundation itself — the cheap, standardized labor that made the industry’s pyramid structure work. In this episode, we trace how Indian IT industrialized itself, why its biggest strength is now becoming a liability, and what happens when top AI talent refuses to work inside rigid, hierarchical systems. We hear from industry analysts and former CEOs on whether IT giants can rebuild their culture fast enough — or whether this disruption is one wave they can’t ride out.

Jochelle Mendonca reports, Anirban Chowdhury narrates for audio.

<p>Indian IT built its empire on one formula: throw armies of low-cost engineers at repeatable work, and scale relentlessly. That formula survived Y2K, the dot-com crash, and cloud computing. But AI attacks the model&rsquo;s foundation itself &mdash; the cheap, standardized labor that made the industry&rsquo;s pyramid structure work. In this episode, we trace how Indian IT industrialized itself, why its biggest strength is now becoming a liability, and what happens when top AI talent refuses to work inside rigid, hierarchical systems. We hear from industry analysts and former CEOs on whether IT giants can rebuild their culture fast enough &mdash; or whether this disruption is one wave they can&rsquo;t ride out.</p>
<p>Jochelle Mendonca reports, Anirban Chowdhury narrates for audio.</p>

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The Morning Brief

ET Deep Dive: The Pyramid Problem: Why AI Is Breaking Indian IT’s Winning Formula