'Business interest in quantum already beginning to develop'

On 28 November, Tata Consultancy Services Ltd (TCS), India’s largest IT services company, partnered with Amazon Web Services to set up a quantum computing lab for building applications. On 12 April, TCS announced that it would not cut down on its research and development spending despite an expected industry-wide tech spending decline in FY24.

- Shouvik Das

NEW DELHI : And, on 19 April, the Centre’s decision to launch a ₹6,004 crore National Quantum Mission came as a shot in the arm for the company. In an interview, K. Ananth Krishnan, the chief technology officer of TCS, spoke about the company’s investment plans for new technologies, hiring and more. Edited excerpts:

How is TCS investing in new areas amid the projected uncertainties in tech spending in FY24?

We will continue to make new tech investments based on four key parameters and business returns. For instance, quantum computing has been a buzzword for over a decade, but we did not make any investments until 2016-17. Today, we make a cumulative research and innovation investment of 30-40% of our total innovation and R&D expenditure on initiatives such as quantum computing, which are showing early signs of business interest.

(In FY22, TCS spent ₹2,178 crore in innovation and R&D. Its FY23 ‘innovation and R&D’ spending was not available. Samir Seksaria, the chief financial officer of TCS, said during its FY23 earnings call that it would not cut down on investments in this segment, despite a projected downturn for FY24.)

Beyond this, will we be making investments specifically for quantum computing? Yes, because it is a long-term play. Today, we have just a mid-double-digit number of members working on it. However, the case is strong for us to invest more, even if it does not offer immediate returns.

Talking of new tech, are clients still interested in the ‘metaverse’, now that the bubble has burst?