India now has 2,117 Global Capability Centers generating $98.4 billion in estimated FY26 revenue, while GCCs accounted for 44% of office leasing demand in Q1 2026, according to an Awfis-Zinnov report.
India’s Global Capability Centres (GCCs) are moving beyond execution-focused operations toward strategic ownership of products, platforms and artificial intelligence (AI)-led mandates, reshaping workforce requirements and workspace decisions, according to a report released by Awfis Space Solutions Ltd in collaboration with Zinnov.
Titled “The Great Workplace Reset: How India GCCs are Redefining Work, Workforce, and Workspace,” the report examines India’s GCC landscape, the changing economics of work, workforce dynamics, workspace decisions and the role of flexible and managed workspaces in GCC expansion.
India currently hosts 2,117 GCCs operating 3,728 units, generating USD 98.4 billion in revenue in FY26E and employing more than 2.36 million professionals. The number of GCCs has grown nearly 32% since FY21, while 506 companies from the Global 2000 now operate centres in India.
The report also notes that GCC expansion has extended beyond Global 2000 companies, with private equity-backed firms, mid-market enterprises and digital native companies increasingly establishing centres in India.
GCC work moves up the value chain
The nature of work performed by India’s GCCs has also changed significantly. Between 2015 and 2026, commodity and procedure-based work declined, while complex problem-solving work increased to 38.1%. Cutting-edge research and development (R&D) work also doubled during the period.
According to the report, almost half of India’s GCCs now have an equal or higher share of frontier work compared with their headquarters.
Companies actively developing AI products conduct 2X as much cutting-edge R&D work in India as companies that are only adopting third-party AI, the report said. This indicates a growing role for India in core AI innovation alongside AI deployment.
AI talent pool nearly doubles
The shift toward higher-value and AI-related work is also changing talent requirements within GCCs.
India’s AI/ML talent pool within GCCs has nearly doubled from 122,000 professionals in 2023 to a projected 250,000 in 2026, making India the second-largest AI talent market globally after the United States, according to the report.
Nitika Goel, CMO & Managing Partner, Zinnov, said: “The centre of gravity of AI work has shifted from invention to industrialisation, and that shift has rewritten the GCC Workforce. The specialist we tracked in job descriptions three years ago is now a full-stack engineer, combining domain depth, AI frameworks, and business context to own outcomes. Once the work and the Workforce have changed this much, the workspace decision moves up with them. It becomes a leadership call across talent, control, speed, flexibility, and brand, and India’s newest GCCs are already making that call at entry.”
GCCs drive office leasing demand
The report positions workspace as an operating decision shaped by talent, control, speed, flexibility and brand, rather than solely as a real estate decision.
India recorded its highest-ever quarterly office leasing volume in Q1 2026 at 20.7 million sq ft, with GCCs accounting for 44% of the demand, equivalent to 9.1 million sq ft. This was the highest amount of office space absorbed by GCCs in a single quarter, according to the report.
GCCs’ share of office leasing increased over three consecutive quarters. Of the GCC leasing demand, 64% came from ecommerce, BFSI and technology, while 73% came from US-headquartered companies. Bengaluru and Hyderabad together accounted for 67% of the demand.
Flexible workspace adoption has also increased among GCCs. GCCs currently account for 40% to 45% of enterprise flexible-seat uptake, while 67% plan to increase flexible-seat space beyond 10% of their real estate portfolios.
GCCs scale through flexible and managed workspaces
The report includes case studies of GCCs that expanded from incubation to more than 3,000 seats within months using managed and flexible office formats delivered by Awfis. The examples cover sectors including global commerce, healthcare technology, media monitoring and consumer manufacturing.
Amit Ramani, Chairman and Managing Director, Awfis Space Solutions Ltd., said: “This report validates the trajectory we have built our business around. India’s GCCs are no longer just execution centres; they now own products, platforms, and AI-led mandates, and that kind of strategic mandate cannot be supported by conventional real estate timelines. It demands workspace that moves as fast as the business does, which is exactly why flexible and managed office formats have become the category’s fastest-growing choice among GCCs.”
Ramani Further added “Awfis has spent this shift building the scale and specialisation to meet this evolving demand, with an integrated model spanning flexible workspaces, managed offices, and Transform by Awfis (Design & Build) that lets us take a centre from early incubation to a fully custom, brand-led workspace on time. That is precisely the speed and control India’s next generation of GCCs are asking for.“
As part of its continued partnership with Zinnov, Awfis is also the workspace partner for the 19th edition of Zinnov Confluence 2026, marking the second consecutive year of its association with the industry event. The event brings together GCC leaders, enterprise decision-makers, and industry experts to discuss the future of Global Capability Centres in India.
Awfis Space Solutions Ltd. has a presence in 18 cities and 250+ centres and serves more than 3,500 clients. Its solutions include Flex Space Solutions, Mobility Solutions, Transform by Awfis, Awfis Go, Awfis Café and TechLabs.
Zinnov is a global management and strategy consulting firm focused on technology, AI, globalisation and innovation. According to the release, the firm has advised 250+ Fortune 500 companies, helped establish and transform 220+ Global Capability Centers, and supported 100+ Private Equity firms on technology investments, M&A and value creation.
