Information Technology

<h2 style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-size: 12pt;">Q1. Could you start by giving us a brief overview of your professional background, particularly focusing on your expertise in the industry?</span></h2><p style="text-align: justify;">I have 20 years of industry experience in driving digital transformation including Fortune-100 companies across different industries like BFSI, Fin Tech, Ed Tech, High Tech, Health Tech, Retail &amp; eCommerce &amp; other businesses. I have hands-on expertise in Solution Design, Enterprise Architecture, PoC, Demo and Presales, Pricing and P&amp;L for delivery excellence.</p><p style="text-align: justify;">&nbsp;</p><h2 style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-size: 12pt;">Q2. What are some of the key strategies adopted by major players like Google, Microsoft, and Amazon leading in AI and cloud platforms, what niche strategies are smaller competitors adopting to carve out market share?&nbsp;Are there any disruptive innovations from these smaller entities that challenge the status quo? </span></h2><p style="text-align: justify;">Major AI and cloud players like Microsoft, Amazon, and Google are leading by offering comprehensive, end-to-end AI and cloud stacks, democratizing AI with user-friendly tools, focusing on enterprise-grade industry solutions, investing heavily in responsible AI, and integrating Gen AI into their core offerings.</p><p style="text-align: justify;">At the same time, the smaller competitors in the market carve out market share through their niche strategies like vertical specialization, horizontal specialization in specific AI capabilities, providing AI observability and governance tools, etc. In the latest development, human-centric ethical AI approaches from Anthropic, specialized AI agents that automate complex workflows, challenge the status quo by offering alternative paths to AI development and deployment.</p><p style="text-align: justify;">&nbsp;</p><h2 style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-size: 12pt;">Q3. What are the growth rates for cloud technology adoption in emerging markets compared to developed markets?&nbsp;</span><br><span style="font-size: 12pt;">How are privacy and data sovereignty regulations in these regions influencing cloud strategies? </span></h2><p style="text-align: justify;">Cloud technology adoption is surging faster in emerging markets at ~ 20+% on a CAGR basis. In the developed markets like the USA, which are already mature in cloud adoption, are now focusing on optimization and complex hybrid and multi-cloud strategies. Privacy and data sovereignty regulations, which often mandate data localization, heavily influence cloud strategies globally. This compels the major cloud providers like Microsoft, AWS, and Google to establish more local data centres, leading businesses to adopt hybrid and multi-cloud models to ensure compliance while leveraging cloud benefits.</p><p style="text-align: justify;">&nbsp;</p><h2 style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-size: 12pt;">Q4. How are different market segments within AI (like GenAI, LLM, predictive analytics) and cloud computing (public, private, hybrid) performing, and what are the key growth drivers and challenges for each?</span></h2><p style="text-align: justify;">While the AI market is at peak, Gen AI and LLM solutions are experiencing explosive growth driven by their ability to automate content creation to enhance their human-machine interaction. Numerous examples in this space are taking shape.</p><p style="text-align: justify;">&nbsp;</p><h2 style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-size: 12pt;">Q5. How is AI as a Service (AIaaS) on Azure shaping the competitive landscape for businesses requiring advanced AI capabilities without substantial upfront investment?</span></h2><p style="text-align: justify;">AIaaS fundamentally reshapes the competitive landscape by democratizing access to advanced AI capabilities for businesses of all sizes, eliminating the need for substantial upfront investment. AIaaS allows smaller enterprises and startups to leverage cutting-edge AI previously exclusive to larger corporations, fostering innovation by reducing development time and enabling rapid experimentation with a pay-as-you-go model.</p><p style="text-align: justify;">&nbsp;</p><h2 style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-size: 12pt;">Q6. What are the next big developments expected in the fields of AI and ML over the next five years? How might these developments influence sectors like fintech and health tech? </span></h2><p style="text-align: justify;">Agentic AI, AI Agents etc. In the next five years, new developments in automation and innovation will influence almost all sectors, including health tech, fintech, edtech, etc.</p><p style="text-align: justify;">&nbsp;</p><h2 style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-size: 12pt;">Q7. If you were an investor looking at companies within the space, what critical question would you pose to their senior management? </span></h2><p style="text-align: justify;">What are the top 10 business problems that can be solved with new-age tech?</p><p style="text-align: justify;">&nbsp;</p><p style="text-align: justify;">&nbsp;</p><p style="text-align: justify;">&nbsp;</p><p style="text-align: justify;">&nbsp;</p><p style="text-align: justify;">&nbsp;</p><p style="text-align: justify;">&nbsp;</p>