The country's largest private sector lender HDFC Bank does not see its use of artificial intelligence leading to any layoffs, a top company official has said.
The lender, which had 2.20 lakh employees as of September, is carrying out some "lighthouse experiments" in technologies, including generative AI, which will deliver its advantages in the next 18-24 months, HDFC Bank chief executive and managing director Sashidhar Jagdishan said on Saturday.
"Frankly, AI is not going (to result in) any layoff whatsoever in our bank, at least. Because I see this as a massive opportunity to move people from the backend to the front end or to the technology end," Jagdishan told reporters in the post-earnings call, replying to a specific question on the impact of AI on jobs.
"It's only going to change the mix of where our people are going to be positioned. But, it is not going to reduce people apart from normal attrition that we have," he added in the remarks that come amid heightened concerns over the impact of AI on jobs across sectors.
Even in banking, a major Southeast Asian powerhouse's chief executive had recently remarked that he has not added people to the workforce for the first time in 15 years despite business growth, and pointed towards a 10 percent shrinkage in staff because of AI over the next 3 years.
In the last six months, HDFC Bank has added about 5,000 employees to take its overall base to over 2.20 lakh at the end of September. -- PTI