Cognizant Plans to Recruit 25,000 Graduates in 2026 Amid AI-Driven Productivity Gains

Cognizant is preparing to significantly expand its campus recruitment programme next year, signalling renewed confidence in entry-level talent as artificial intelligence tools increasingly support delivery efficiency and project execution, as per news reports. 

Hiring Expansion Driven By AI-Enabled Delivery 

The IT services company intends to recruit between 24,000 and 25,000 fresh graduates in 2026, representing about a 20% increase compared with the roughly 20,000 freshers it hired in during 2025.  

From last year’s batch, most recruits have already been assigned to client engagements, while the rest remain in structured training pipelines. 

Senior leadership said the company is comfortable raising fresher intake because AI-assisted workflows now allow junior engineers to become billable faster and contribute more meaningfully at earlier stages of delivery. 

“We hired close to 20,000 school graduates in 2025, for next year we plan to increase this by about 20%. So, we, we would be very happy to land around 240000-25000 for 2026,” CFO Jatin Dalal said 

Shift In Talent Pyramid Strategy 

Management said that wider adoption of AI platforms, autonomous coding assistants and advanced automation is changing how work gets distributed inside delivery teams.  

Instead of concentrating value creation at senior levels, more execution capability can now sit at the base of the talent pyramid. 

Executives said ongoing collaborations with multiple global AI model and platform providers are helping redesign project delivery models, enabling broader participation from early-career hires. 

Productivity And Financial Signals 

Operating metrics also show improving efficiency. Revenue generated per employee has risen in the mid-single digits over the past year, while margin contribution per employee has grown even faster, pointing to increasing non-linearity between headcount growth and revenue expansion. 

During 2025, the company added nearly 15,000 employees overall. Quarterly additions continued into the December period, alongside steady revenue growth and margin expansion at the full-year level. 

Read More: Cognizant Charts Next Growth Phase with AI Push, Outcome-Based Pricing and India IPO Plan! 

Conclusion 

The planned jump in fresher hiring reflects Cognizant’s bet that AI-augmented delivery models will support scale, speed, and cost efficiency allowing larger entry-level cohorts without diluting productivity. 

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