Since August we’ve moved four clients into full-scale production with Gen AI: Xoriant’s Rao

The US-headquartered technology services company Xoriant, which specialises in product engineering, cloud, artificial intelligence (AI), and digital transformation solutions, has multiple delivery centers across India and is expanding its presence in Eastern Europe. In a conversation with Techcircle, Mukund Rao, President of Global Markets at Xoriant, discusses the company’s recent acquisitions, its approach to digital transformation, and the evolving role of AI in enterprise technology. Edited Excerpts:

How do the recent acquisitions enhance Xoriant’s capabilities and expansion strategy?

Maple Labs is a company specialising in platform engineering. Xoriant had held a majority stake in Maple Labs for quite some time, having originally invested in them years ago. More recently, we fully brought them on board, strengthening and expanding our engineering capabilities.

Thereafter, with consulting firm Thoucentric's acquisition, we enhanced our ability to lead with our core strengths. Our most recent acquisition was Fexle, a Jaipur-based Salesforce Platinum Partner.

This move enhances our customer interface, complementing both our engineering expertise and core platform capabilities.

Are there any specific markets or technology areas your company plans to invest in through future acquisitions?

Our acquisitions are guided by strategic value rather than just scale. Right now, our key areas of interest are data and expanding our delivery centers in Eastern Europe. 

What about expansion in India?

India remains our primary hub for delivering capabilities to all our clients. When evaluating assets, particularly in data, we prioritise a strong presence in India. This enhances our ability to integrate, scale, and cross-sell more effectively, ultimately increasing the success rate of acquisitions.

Currently, we operate across multiple centers in India, with Pune being our largest hub. We also have a presence in Bengaluru, Chennai, Hyderabad, Mumbai, Delhi, and Gurugram. Recently, we expanded to Jaipur, which we see as a valuable addition to complement our existing network.

What engineering platforms has your company developed that have had a real impact on industries?

Rather than building isolated technology products, we create ecosystems that allow others to develop and operate efficiently. Over the past three decades, the company has built more than 700 platforms, supporting both Fortune 500 companies and fast-growing startups.

One example is in US mortgage lending, where we transitioned a standalone product into a platform now used by over 3,000 mortgage brokers, processing 80% of all US mortgages. In the payment sector, we built a platform for partner banks to offer crypto services, allowing them to expand into digital currency. For a German chemical company, we developed a platform to track and repurpose lithium-ion batteries, ensuring compliance with new sustainability regulations. 

We have also worked on technology integrations, such as combining video conferencing with CRM and workspace tools to improve productivity for over 200,000 users. In healthcare, we helped build the Obamacare insurance platform that allows users to access insurance options. Across industries, our work focuses on enabling adoption, innovation, and business growth through platform engineering.

What are the key challenges enterprises face in their digital transformation journey today? 

Digital transformation initiatives often involve make-or-break decisions not just for the leaders driving them but sometimes for the entire organisation.

Many large systems integrators (SIs) have grown so big that they struggle to be truly relevant to all their clients. Unless a company is large enough, it may not receive the best service from them.

That’s why it’s crucial to choose a partner for whom both the transformation and the client are equally strategic.

Moreover, talent and capability are critical. Everyone is competing for the same talent pool, so companies that can effectively upskill their teams and develop talent in-house have a significant advantage. 

Finally, experience and a strong engineering track record make a huge difference. Companies that bring both to the table tend to win.

How is AI reshaping digital transformation in enterprises, and where do you see the biggest opportunities?

Over the past couple of years, it feels like any tech conversation is incomplete without mentioning generative AI. 

Everyone is experimenting with proofs of concept, but we’ve taken it a step further. In the last six months, we’ve successfully moved four of our clients into full-scale production with generative AI. Our approach has been to focus not just on efficiency but on business growth.

Which industries are underutilising AI, and how can they benefit from AI-driven engineering platforms?

Everyone is dipping their feet in the water, we're seeing tremendous adoption across industries. 

Take healthcare and life sciences, for example. There’s enormous potential for clinical trials and other applications by integrating technology with available datasets. The scale is expanding rapidly, and there’s so much that can be done in this space. However, it’s a partially regulated industry with significant compliance requirements, especially in the US striking a balance between regulation and technology adoption will be key, and I believe doing so will yield tremendous benefits.

The ability to trace and explain how AI-driven conclusions are reached is critical. 

That said, adoption is already happening at scale. Many industries are leveraging AI, and we’ve seen success in several areas. In manufacturing, for instance, we’ve helped companies improve order inflows by enabling faster responses to client queries and automating bill of materials generation. In health and safety, we’ve worked with the NFL Players Association to use predictive AI to identify and prevent concussions—an especially crucial issue in American football. 

Banking is another space where AI is making a big impact, particularly in financial planning and analysis (FP&A). AI can process vast amounts of financial data, assist with investment decisions, and act as a co-pilot for analysts. But in my view, healthcare, life sciences, and safety are the areas with the greatest potential.

How do you see hyperscalers evolving in the next few years, and what does this mean for enterprises using cloud technology?

Hyperscalers are everywhere today, offering significant advantages to organisations and enterprises. They enable businesses to scale quickly and set up IT infrastructure with ease by handling the complex backend operations. This makes them incredibly valuable.

As platforms evolve, ensuring they are truly accessible to the broader ecosystem is crucial and that means leveraging the cloud. We are actively working on this. However, a key concern is how cloud operating costs, especially with hyperscalers, will impact organisations over time.

That’s why we focus heavily on helping organisations make informed decisions about what to run on the cloud versus on-premises. We also emphasise cost management through FinOps, ensuring businesses optimise their cloud spending effectively.

What are the top technology trends that will impact enterprise digital transformation in the next 3-5 years, and how is your company positioning itself to capitalise on them?

There’s been a significant shift in how customers and consumers expect technology to perform. About 15 to 20 years ago, workplace technology was far superior to what people had access to at home. That’s no longer the case.

Today, people expect to interact with businesses in the same seamless way they use their phones, whether it’s for healthcare, retail, or any other service. This change has pushed companies to adapt quickly and establish themselves in this new digital landscape.

To keep up with evolving customer expectations, companies must make AI a core part of their offerings. Integrating AI into traditional software products is becoming crucial, and ultimately, this will drive profitability and growth for businesses.

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