EY Launches AI Academy to Boost GenAI Skills in Indian Industries

1. Introduction

In a bold move to address India’s burgeoning generative AI (GenAI) skills gap, EY India has launched its cutting-edge AI Academy, aiming to upskill professionals across industries. This initiative comes at a crucial time, as EY reports underscore mounting demand—and unmet supply—of AI talent in India.

With GenAI poised to transform jobs and unlock trillions in economic value, EY is tackling two core challenges: a severe shortfall in AI-ready professionals and low organizational readiness to deploy GenAI strategically.(EY)

Why Now: The GenAI Imperative in India

Skills Shortage: A Critical Barrier

EY’s latest research highlights a staggering gap:

• 97 % of Indian enterprises identify lack of internal talent as a primary GenAI adoption barrier.
• Only 3 % of companies currently have sufficient in-house GenAI capability.
• Across sectors, 52 %–60 % of organisations cite talent shortage as a top challenge.

This talent deficit restricts the transition from pilot to production, with only 15 % of organisations having GenAI applications in full-scale deployment .

Transformative Potential of GenAI

EY projects enormous economic and workforce impacts:

• Up to 38 million jobs could be transformed by 2030, unlocking productivity boosts of over 2.6 % in organized sectors—and potentially 5 %–6 % with GenAI adoption in the informal sector.
• GenAI could contribute $1.2–1.5 trillion to India’s economy by FY 2030, including $360–440 billion in FY 2029–30 alone.
• Key sectors: IT (43–45 % productivity gain), software development (up to 60 %); call centers (80 %); BPO, consulting, customer service – all set for gains.

EY’s Response: The AI Academy Overview

Program Scope & Reach

Launched in July 2025, the AI Academy builds on EY’s internal success—over 44,000 employees upskilled in India—and now opens to external enterprises. It features:

• 200+ real-world AI use cases across domains, with hands-on learning.
• Tailored tracks: from leadership to technical specialist roles.

Target Industries

The Academy is geared toward sectors where GenAI can deliver immediate impact:

• Telecom, Banking & Financial Services, IT/ITeS, Infrastructure, FMCG, and more.
• Leveraging EY’s GCC insights—70 % of global capability centres in India rank GenAI as a top priority .

Curriculum & Offerings

Structured Learning Tracks

EY has architected multi-tier programs catering to varied participants:

1. AI Aspirants
   • Fundamental GenAI concepts and prompt engineering basics.
2. AI Ambassadors (2-day Interactive Workshops)
   • Leadership-focused training to build AI manifestos linked to organizational strategy.
3. AI Transformation Champions
   • Equips mid-senior business roles to initiate GenAI use cases.
4. AI Development & Implementation Specialists
   • Deep technical skilling for data scientists, ML engineers, and LLM-practitioners.

Hands-On, Business-Aligned Learning

• 200+ use cases simulate real-world applications: predictive maintenance, sentiment analysis, virtual agents, document automation, etc. .
• Data-backed projects ensure skills translate into measurable revenue, cost savings, and risk reduction.

Pilot Success & ROI Outcomes

Early enterprise pilot programs yielded solid traction:

• 50+ GenAI projects initiated across five pilot companies.
• Leadership teams created AI manifestos to guide future adoption.
• EY India is investing $1.4 billion in AI over five years to support this strategic push .

Broader GenAI Ecosystem Context

EY’s Global AI Strategy

The India AI Academy is part of EY’s larger EY.ai platform rollout, backed by USD 1.4 billion investment Key elements:

• EY.ai EYQ: proprietary LLM secured through Azure OpenAI integration.
• Embedded AI in EY Fabric, used by 60k clients and 1.5M users.
• Alliances: Microsoft, IBM, Dell, UiPath, etc. .

Citizen Skills & Public-Private Initiatives

EY’s program complements other Indian efforts:

• GCC Pulse Survey: 70 % of GCCs in India prioritizing GenAI upskilling.
• Techathons, Open Science challenges, and partnership with academic bodies for talent pipeline building.
• National digital transformation drives (Smart Cities, Digital India) set up strong demand context.

Challenges and Strategic Solutions

Confronting Talent Gaps

Talented professionals are scarce—197k full GenAI professionals is insufficient. EY’s Academy addresses this through:

• Broad access across non-technical and technical cohorts.
• Role-specific curriculum for effective skill absorption.

Moving from Pilot to Scale

Transformation requires more than isolated pilots (~15 % of enterprises ongoing). EY offers:

• Structured learning plus enterprise-level mentorship.
• Leadership engagement through AI manifestos.
• ROI measurement frameworks promoting scale.

Data Readiness and Governance

Only 3 % of enterprises are fully data-prepared EY’s curriculum includes:

• Data cleaning, pipeline setup, governance best practices within use cases.
• Simulations of real enterprise data environments.

Responsible AI & Ethics

EY’s mandate of “trust” includes responsible AI use:

• Modules on bias mitigation, privacy, security, and compliance.
• Governance embedded within leadership and practitioner tracks under “responsible AI” themes.

Economic Impact & Future Opportunities

Productivity Uplift & Economic Growth

With GenAI’s promise, well-trained workforces can enable:

• ₹20T+ (~$240B) GDP growth by FY 2030.
• Efficiency gains of ~8–10 hrs/week per knowledge worker.

Strategic Industry Transformation

• IT/ITeS productivity could soar 43–45 % in 5 years.
• BPO, software, customer service, financial services stand to gain significantly.

Democratizing AI via Public-Private Partnerships

Scope exists to expand EY’s Academy model:

• Partner with educational institutions via Techathons, challenges.
• Work with government domains such as Smart Cities and Digital India .
• Aid SME adoption of AI through certification & capacity-building efforts.

Voices from EY Leadership

Anurag Malik, People Consulting, EY India:

“As GenAI continues to reshape the world of work … the need to invest in people has never been more critical”.

Mahesh Makhija, Tech Consulting, EY India:

“By fostering public-private collaborations and investing in talent development, India can also become a global hub for AI‑skilled talent.”.

These perspectives highlight that human capital, not just tech, is at the heart of AI-led transformation.

How Organizations Can Engage

1. Leadership Buy-In: Start with AI manifestos to align organizational strategy.

2. Role-Based Learning: Enroll key stakeholders—leaders and practitioners—in relevant tracks.

3. Project Governance: Run structured pilots with expert coaching and ROI measurement.

4. Scale-up Strategy: Expand successful use cases via governance frameworks and responsible AI oversight.

5. Ecosystem Engagement: Participate in Techathons and challenges to build AI talent pipelines and stay updated.

Conclusion

EY India’s AI Academy represents a timely and strategic initiative poised to accelerate GenAI adoption across industries. It merges EY’s global investments in AI platforms (like EY.ai) with locally calibrated upskilling programs, offering real-world business impact. There has never been a more opportune moment for India to mobilize its latent AI potential.

With structured education, leadership alignment, and ecosystem support, the program can close the AI skills gap and support the transition from AI experimentation to enterprise-wide GenAI adoption—ultimately powering economic growth, productivity, and innovation.