3 days ago

US tech firm Salesforce to train 10 lakh Indians on AI by 2030

Salesforce has committed to equip one million learners in India with Artificial Intelligence (AI) skills by 2030, as US tech firm marks the 10th anniversary of its Centre of Excellence (CoE) in the country.

The commitment – to skill one million people – is an initiative beyond digital literacy as it aims to prepare the country’s workforce for jobs of the future, the firm said in press statement.

“India has earned its place at the centre of the global technology story — not by following trends, but by shaping them. As we mark 10 years of our CoE, I am reminded that our greatest achievements have been the people we have empowered along the way. Our commitment to skill 1 million learners by 2030 reflects a firm belief that India’s workforce is not just ready for the AI economy — it is ready to lead it,” Arundhati Bhattacharya, President and CEO, Salesforce – South Asia, said.

“At Salesforce, we are committed to ensuring that potential does not go unrealised, and that the next generation of technology leaders emerges from right here,” she added.

Leveraging Trailhead, Salesforce’s free digital learning ecosystem, this commitment is being rolled out through a set of integrated strategic programs — uniting academic institutions, industry leaders, and government agencies delivering unique training experiences in a shared mission to build an AI-ready workforce for India’s future.

These include Government-backed AI skilling programs in collaboration with bodies such as IndiaAI, Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology of India (MeitY) targets emerging talent to equip India’s next generation with AI-ready skills.

Another initiative, Virtual Internship Program with All India Council for Technical Education (AICTE) empowers students with hands-on project experience, helping students across India’s towns and cities build job-ready Salesforce and AI skills.

Salesforce academic CoEs with institutions such as Manipal Academy of Higher Education (MAHE) provides a multi-layered strategy to democratise access with hands-on experience to Salesforce and AI skills.

Salesforce partner network — including Accenture, Deloitte, Grant Thornton Bharat, Infosys, PwC and TCS — continues to bring these programs to life through structured training curricula, mentorship-led learning, on-the-job project exposure creating direct pathways to employment within the Salesforce ecosystem.

“India’s transition into a global digital and AI powerhouse will depend on how effectively we prepare our students and workforce for the future of work. Industry-academia collaborations play a critical role in bridging the gap between classroom learning and real-world innovation,” Buddha Chandrasekhar, Chief Coordinating Officer, AICTE, Ministry of Education said.

“Our partnership with Salesforce reflects a shared commitment to building an industry-ready talent pipeline equipped with digital, Cloud, data, and AI capabilities. Initiatives such as curriculum integration, faculty enablement, and virtual internships are helping create meaningful pathways for students to participate in India’s rapidly evolving technology economy,” he added.

Earlier on June 9, Tata Consultancy Services said it is rapidly scaling its AI business with led revenues nearing an annualised run rate of $2.5 billion and the number of AI agents deployed across the company could eventually equal its human workforce. Read the story.