From Minds to Machines: India's top CEOs and CHROs chart the AI-Led talent blueprint at ET NexTech Human Capital Summit 2026

NEW DELHI, Feb. 25, 2026 /PRNewswire/ -- The Economic Times NexTech Human Capital Summit 2026, held on February 18-19, 2026, brought together top CHROs, CEOs, CIOs, CFOs, and Industry Experts, under the theme 'Minds & Machines: Shaping Tomorrow' at the Leela Ambience, Gurugram.

The summit explored examining the real-world impact of AI and GenAI on talent, leadership and organisational design. The discussions also centred on building future skills at scale and reimagining learning ecosystems, creating human-centric, inclusive and high-performance cultures, and redefining the CHRO's role as a strategic business leader within the enterprise.

Workday joined as a Presenting Partner for the two-day summit that convened over 2,000 business leaders, policymakers, technologists and HR innovators, alongside 80 plus global and Indian speakers and 100+ HR technology partners, making it one of the largest and most impactful HR gatherings in the country.

The Summit was graced by a Keynote Address from Dave Ulrich, Professor and Co-Founder of The RBL Group and widely regarded as the world's foremost authority on HR and leadership. He was joined by Jason Oxman, President and CEO of the Information Technology Industry Council (ITI), bringing a global perspective on technology, policy and workforce transformation.

Ulrich positioned AI as an enabler, not the destination, for HR's next chapter. He argued that HR's credibility hinged on its ability to translate people's decisions into tangible business and stakeholder outcomes, particularly in driving customer growth, strengthening investor confidence and building community trust. "AI is not a goal. AI is a means to accomplish a goal," Ulrich said, setting the tone for two days of discussions centred on the convergence of humans and machines.

Prof Raj Reddy, Professor - Computer Science and Robotics, School of Computer Science, Carnegie Mellon University also graced the event with closing keynote fireside chat 'From Data to Judgement: Teaching Leaders How to Think with AI'.

The Summit also brought together top CHROs such as Richard Lobo, Chief People Officer, Tech Mahindra; Geethaa George, Senior EVP - HR, HDFC Bank; Manish Patil, Director (HR), ONGC; Deepti Varma, VP - HR, People eXperience and Technology, Amazon Stores India & Emerging Markets; Anil Kumar Jadli, Director - HR, NTPC; KA Narayan, President - HR, Raymond; Shraddhanjali Rao, Head - HR, Google; Chandrashekhar Chavan, CHRO, UltraTech Cement; and Tarun NP Varma, Global Chief Human Resources & Sustainability Officer, Tata Consumer Products.

The CEO and business leadership cohort featured eminent leaders such as Santosh Iyer, MD & CEO, Mercedes-Benz India; Surendran Chemmenkotil, Managing Director, Metropolis Healthcare Limited; Alok Aggarwal, CEO, Muthoot Homefin (India); and Vishal Sharma, Executive Director & CEO, Godrej Industries.

Moreover, the summit welcomed inspirational voices such as Olympic medallist Saina Nehwal.

"Pressure is something that will naturally be there at any stage, state level, national level, international level. The only way is to learn to enjoy it," Nehwal said, reflecting on her journey from a teenage prodigy to Olympic bronze medallist at the London 2012 Games.

Recalling her loss at the Beijing 2008 Olympics, she described how setbacks sharpened her resolve. "Even if I cry, I have to train. Even if I have a fever or cold, I have to train. Results will come if you keep working hard." For her, resilience is built through repetition, routine and relentless preparation and not emotional highs.

Legendary singer and cultural icon Usha Uthup, shared powerful perspectives on excellence, resilience and sustaining high performance.

In conversation with Yasmin Taj, Editor – ETHRWorld & ETEducation, The Economic Times, Uthup said, "I want people to love me the way I am as I never felt the need to dress or sound like someone else just to 'fit' into the entertainment world. I chose to embrace who I truly am, my saree, bangles, bindi, flowers, and even my bass voice, at a time when stereotypes often dictated what 'good girls' were supposed to look or sound like."

"For me, the turning point was simple: I decided to identify what people called my limitations and flip them into advantages. The only way forward was to turn all my limitations into my strengths. Because real success doesn't come from imitation. It comes from self-acceptance," Uthup added.

As India stands at the cusp of a once-in-a-generation human capital revolution, enterprises are increasingly looking to move beyond incremental digitisation towards intelligent, data-driven workforce transformation. AI is no longer just enhancing HR processes—it is reshaping how organisations plan, deploy and future-proof talent. Reflecting this shift, Sunil Jose, President – India, Workday, Presenting Partner for NexTech Human Capital Summit 2026, shared, "India is at a defining growth moment, and organisations need faster, more intelligent ways to plan and manage their workforce. At Workday, we see AI moving from simply supporting the boardroom to actively shaping workforce and business decisions. Globally, we serve over 11,000 customers and 75 million users, and in India, we partner with 1,800+ customers and 3.8 million users across industries that power everyday life. We are deepening our commitment to India by expanding our teams, strengthening regional communities, and investing in academia to build future-ready Workday skills and drive long-term impact."

The event also featured the grand launch of ETHRWorld's Global Tech Transformations 2026: Signals, Shifts & Strategies from High-Growth Regions — a research study spanning India, Southeast Asia, and the Middle East.

Some of the key revelations of the report include:

• Over 70% of organisations globally have digitised core HR operations.
• HRIS adoption exceeds 75% across regions.
• 30–40% of organisations are using AI in HR beyond pilots.
• 20% are using AI for predictive HR decisions.
• 14% of organisations in India currently use technology for long-term workforce planning.
• 50% of organisations globally plan to increase AI investment in HR in the next 12 months.

The NexTech Human Capital India Summit 2026 was also complemented by a series of high-value platforms designed to deepen engagement and recognise excellence across the ecosystem. The CXO Circle served as an invite-only forum where senior CXOs engaged in closed-door strategic dialogue.

NexTech Leaders League and Learning Leaders League brought together curated communities for peer learning and domain-specific exchanges. The Mentorship Lab facilitated structured conversations between senior leaders and emerging talent, while the Emerging Leaders League Awards celebrated outstanding HR leaders under 40.

Alongside this, The Economic Times HCA Awards honored and celebrated the most visionary HR leaders who go beyond workforce management to elevate and empower their organizations. Further, the Emerging Leaders League provided a platform to celebrate the rising stars in HR leaders who are shaping the future of talent management and organizational culture.

The summit was also proudly held in association with Coursera. It was powered by Keka and UKG, with Asanify and LinkedIn coming on board as co-powered partners, bringing together a strong ecosystem of global and technology leaders to support the event.

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