Prof. Kumar opened the address by stating that alignment between academia and industry should not be viewed as a compromise, but rather as a strategic intersection where innovation, growth, and opportunity can flourish. He outlined the dramatic transformation taking place in the global workforce, noting the millions of jobs being displaced by automation and technology, while several newer job roles are anticipated to emerge. In this regard, he underscored the importance of ensuring the employability of the graduates as an urgent need in bridging the widening skills gap. The session also examined the changing nature of work, tracing the transition from humans performing all tasks independently to humans collaborating with NATs, and ultimately to NATs increasingly executing tasks autonomously. In this context, Dr Kumar stressed the importance of NATs that are fundamentally reshaping how businesses operate and how skills are defined.

A major highlight of the session was the introduction of the “3Es Framework” for alignment — Education, Experience, and Engagement. He noted that Education is delivered to academia, enabling personalised learning pathways, AI-driven curriculum curation, immersive simulations through virtual and augmented reality, and real-time knowledge dissemination. Experience is delivered to industry through real-world-simulated internships, work-integrated learning (WIL), digital twins, and co-creation platforms. Engagement of the workforce is delivered to the future workforce through tools that foster agency, purpose-driven learning, and self-directed growth paths powered by AI personalisation. Here, Dr Kumar further elaborated on transformative dimensions shaping modern business ecosystems.

The address then turned to the five transformative domains – transformative education, transformative marketing, transformative branding, transformative operations, and transformative strategy – through which the 3 Es are operationalised. Particularly, he emphasised the power of transformative education models driven by dynamic curricula, lifelong learning initiatives, and self-learning platforms to be critical. He also discussed the concept of “University as a Platform (UaaP)” as a significant theme, describing the evolution of universities from location-based institutions into scalable, technology-enabled ecosystems facilitating global and flexible education delivery. Citing examples from leading global organizations such as Nike, Zara, Lego, Amazon, Sephora, BMW, and JPMorgan, among others, Dr. Kumar illustrated how the five transformative domains are using NATs to enable personalisation, predictive intelligence, operational agility, hyper-automation, and enhanced user engagement.

Prof. Kumar closed his address by bringing together the threads of the session into a call for structural alignment among the three actors. He contrasted the current state — siloed institutions, lagging curricula, frustrated employers, and under-skilled graduates — with the vision of a NAT-powered networked ecosystem that produces work-ready graduates, gives industry active co-creators of knowledge, and allows academia to earn relevance, reach, and revenue simultaneously. The address concluded with a call to action directed at each of the three stakeholder groups. Academia was urged to stop designing curricula for yesterday’s jobs and start building platforms, not pipelines. Industry was urged to stop waiting for work-ready graduates and start co-creating them — and branding that effort. The future workforce was urged to stop consuming education passively and start building its ecosystem.

An engaging discussion followed, where participants raised thought-provoking questions regarding the role of policy, the prioritisation of meta-skills, and the inclusivity of educational institutions. Dr. Kumar emphasised that policy frameworks serve as a critical fourth pillar in enabling collaboration between academia, industry, and workforce ecosystems. He further advocated for a shift from degree-centric education to capability-driven learning focused on adaptability, critical thinking, and continuous skill development.

Dr. Kumar concluded the session with a powerful message on the need to collaboratively shape the future of work by stating that “The future of growth is not in any one of the three spaces. It is in the space they share.”

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However, the real inflection point lies not just in the scale of job creation, but in how these jobs are being redefined. AI is no longer a supporting layer in the green transition, but a central architectural system. Traditionally, green jobs were execution-heavy, centered on roles such as solar panel installation, waste management, and regulatory compliance. Today, the value is shifting decisively toward intelligence-led roles that combine sustainability expertise with data, automation, and predictive capabilities.

Over the past 12 months, this shift is already visible across hiring trends. Roles such as Renewable Energy Engineers, EV & Powertrain Engineers, Battery Lifecycle & Recycling Specialists, ESG Analysts, Sustainability Data Analysts, and Hydrogen Engineers have seen significant demand across both metro and emerging cities. Notably, nearly 70% of new green jobs now require digital or technology-led skills, reflecting a deeper convergence of sustainability with AI, data science, and automation.

This shift is also highlighting a structural imbalance. While demand for green talent is expanding at an estimated 15–20% annually, the talent pipeline is growing at just 6–8%, indicating a potential shortfall of 1.5–2 million skilled professionals. Even within the projected growth trajectory, nearly 20–25% of roles remain hard to fill, particularly in specialised areas such as battery analytics, hydrogen engineering, and ESG data science.

AI is playing a transformative role here, disrupting and enabling in equal measure. While automation is phasing out repetitive, low-skill roles, it is simultaneously accelerating the creation of high-value roles through hyper-personalised skilling, AI-led simulations, and predictive workforce planning. Emerging roles such as AI/ML engineers for energy optimisation, sustainability data specialists, and carbon analytics professionals are expected to see demand surge significantly over the next few years. Aligning with market demand, average compensation is also likely to increase for entry (12–15%), mid (18–22%) and senior (25–30%) roles in 2026, further reinforcing the emergence of a “green premium” in the talent market.

Sectorally, the depth of transformation is becoming more visible. In the EV ecosystem, demand is shifting beyond manufacturing into battery lifecycle management, recycling, and predictive analytics, where talent availability remains critically low. Battery recycling and circular economy roles, in particular, are emerging as high-deficit talent areas over the next 3–5 years.

Another critical dimension of this transformation is the geographic redistribution of opportunity. Tier II and Tier III cities, which were earlier projected to contribute 35–40% of green jobs by FY28, are now poised to play an even larger role, potentially accounting for almost 50% of AI-green hybrid roles in the next 10 years. Cities like Coimbatore, Indore, and Bhubaneswar are emerging as micro-hubs, driven by a combination of digital infrastructure, lower talent costs, and access to untapped workforce pools. AI-enabled remote collaboration is further dissolving location barriers, making “distributed sustainability workforces” a viable model.

Yet, this transformation also highlights a persistent and critical gap in terms of gender parity. Women currently make up only 11–12% of the green workforce, with even lower participation in AI-intensive roles. However, this convergence of AI and sustainability presents a rare opportunity to reset the baseline. As roles become more cognitive, flexible, and remote-friendly, women’s participation could rise significantly in the next few years, provided there is focused investment in targeted skilling, returnship programs, and inclusive hiring frameworks.

At the same time, hiring itself is undergoing a structural shift. Nearly 60–65% of organisations are moving towards skill-based hiring, while over 55–60% are investing in green-focused learning and development programs. This indicates a clear transition from degree-led hiring to capability-first workforce models, with nearly 6 out of 10 traditional green roles expected to require reskilling by 2030.

India’s policy ambitions are further accelerating this transformation. Targets such as 500 GW non-fossil fuel capacity, 50% energy from renewables, and the National Green Hydrogen Mission (5 MTPA by 2030) are not just climate goals, they are direct drivers of workforce demand. The scale of these ambitions will require a highly specialised workforce across engineering, analytics, infrastructure, and sustainability domains, making talent readiness a critical success factor.

What is unfolding is not just a shift in jobs, but in job architecture itself, marking the transition from a green transition to a talent transition. The convergence of AI and sustainability is creating a new class of work, rewarding intelligence over execution, adaptability over repetition. The scale of opportunity is undeniable, but so is the urgency. India’s advantage will not come from how many green jobs it creates, but from how quickly it builds the workforce to power them.

Quote from Sachin Alug, CEO, NLB Services, “AI is fundamentally redrawing the boundaries of green work. We are moving from labour-intensive roles to intelligence-led ones, and that shift will determine who stays relevant in the workforce. This makes reskilling not just a policy priority, but a business imperative, with critical interventions expected from India Inc. this year. The workforce of the future will require a fusion of AI literacy, sustainability expertise, and high-order cognitive skills such as systems thinking, adaptability, and decision intelligence.”

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Senior leaders like across industry, academia, and policy converge to discuss scalable solutions to India’s employability challenge

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Through this MoU, MSDE will collaborate with the World Economic Forum to launch and implement a Skills Accelerator in India, a multistakeholder platform aimed at identifying, scaling, and accelerating innovative solutions and public–private partnerships to address critical skills gaps in the workforce. The Accelerator will support efforts to strengthen India’s Technical and Vocational Education and Training (TVET) ecosystem by ensuring closer alignment between skilling initiatives and the evolving demands of industry and the global economy.

Commenting on the milestone achieved, Shri Jayant Chaudhary, Minister of State (Independent Charge) for Skill Development and Entrepreneurship and Minister of Education, Government of India said, “What began as a strategic vision to align India’s skilling ecosystem with the future of work has now taken a structured and global form. The formalization of the India Skills Accelerator, in partnership with the World Economic Forum, marks a key milestone in building a future-ready, globally competitive workforce. By bringing government, industry, and education together, the initiative strengthens coordinated action to address current and emerging skill gaps, enable outcome-based skill financing, and promote lifelong learning and alignment with global labour-market demand. Aligned with NEP 2020 and Vision India@2047, it reinforces skilling as a central pillar of inclusive growth and national transformation.”

Commenting on the announcement Shri Sukanta Majumdar, Minister of State for Education said, “I warmly welcome the landmark MoU between the Ministry of Skill Development & Entrepreneurship and the World Economic Forum to launch the Skills Accelerator in India. This collaboration strongly complements the vision of the National Education Policy (NEP) 2020 by integrating education with skilling, fostering lifelong learning, and aligning curricula with future industry needs.

This initiative will significantly benefit India by bridging critical skill gaps, enhancing the global employability of our youth, and ensuring that India’s talent pool is aligned with emerging domains such as artificial intelligence, green energy, robotics, and advanced manufacturing. By promoting industry-linked training, mutual recognition of qualifications, and innovative financing for skilling, the partnership will strengthen our TVET ecosystem, support inclusive growth, and position India as a global hub for skilled manpower and innovation in the journey towards Viksit Bharat @2047.”

Sanjiv Bajaj, Co-Chair for India Skills Accelerator, and Chairman & Managing Director, Bajaj Finserv Ltd., said, “The India Skills Accelerator initiative is a strategic step towards strengthening India’s long-term competitiveness. Aligning global insights on the future of work with India’s talent pool will help build scalable, industry-aligned skilling architecture that supports productivity, innovation and inclusive growth. With over 500 million people under the age of 25, skilling India’s youth is central to converting our demographic advantage into economic leadership. At Bajaj Finserv, skilling is a core pillar of our social commitment under the Group’s Rs. 5,000 crore Bajaj Beyond CSR programme. Sustained investment in human capital will be critical to realising the Hon’ble Prime Minister Shri Narendra Modi’s vision of a Viksit Bharat by 2047.”

“India’s workforce advantage lies in aligning scale with skills. The India Skills Accelerator strengthens the link between policy and practice—mobilising industry, educators, and innovators to translate emerging workforce needs into deployable skills and sustainable jobs. In partnership with the World Economic Forum, it positions India as a trusted, future-ready talent contributor to the global economy,” said Ms. Shobana Kamineni, Co-Chair for India Skills Accelerator Executive Chairperson Apollo Health Co & Promoter Director Apollo Hospitals.

The Skills Accelerator will focus on strategically addressing skills gaps by promoting lifelong learning, upskilling, and reskilling, in line with India’s Vision @2047 and the National Education Policy (NEP) 2020. The initiative will encourage flexible curriculum, integration of vocational and higher education pathways, mutual recognition of qualifications, and capacity building across institutions. MSDE will work closely with higher education institutions, vocational training institutions, and regulatory bodies such as AICTE and UGC to support awareness, implementation, and scale the Accelerator.

As part of the collaboration, the Accelerator will also support innovative financing mechanisms for skilling, enable strategic coordination among key stakeholders, and identify emerging global demand and supply trends across trades and job roles to enhance international employability. Special emphasis will be placed on collaboration in emerging Future of Work domains, including artificial intelligence, robotics, green energy, cybersecurity, and advanced manufacturing, alongside innovation-led activities such as hackathons and the rollout of a structured Action Plan.

The implementation of the MoU will be overseen through a governance framework involving Co-Chairs from government and the private sector, in collaboration with the World Economic Forum. MSDE will play a central role in setting the strategic direction of the Skills Accelerator, coordinating stakeholder engagement, and championing the initiative across industry, government, and civil society, while also contributing to monitoring and impact assessment mechanisms.

The MoU also reflects strong inter-ministerial coordination, with the Ministry of Skill Development and Entrepreneurship, the Ministry of External Affairs, and the Ministry of Education working together to advance India’s skilling and vocational education agenda through global partnerships.

This collaboration marks a new chapter in India and WEF relations, building on the momentum generated during India’s participation at the 55th WEF Annual Meeting in Davos-Klosters, Switzerland, in January 2025, where skill development was highlighted as a strategic pillar for inclusive growth and global collaboration.

Through this partnership with the World Economic Forum, MSDE aims to accelerate reforms, deepen global linkages, and position India as a leading hub for skills, talent, and innovation, contributing to a resilient, inclusive, and future-ready workforce for the decades ahead.

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While digital platforms have enabled large-scale employment absorption, the study finds that income growth remains modest for a significant share of workers. Over 60 percent of surveyed gig workers work full-time hours, with average monthly earnings at around ₹22,500. Income increases are largely linked to longer working hours rather than structured skill advancement, indicating the need for clearer progression frameworks.

The report also notes that early entry into gig work, often immediately after school, can shape long-term career trajectories. Without formal skilling pathways, many workers continue in similar roles through their mid-20s, even as financial responsibilities increase. Addressing this gap, the report argues, will be critical to ensuring the gig economy contributes meaningfully to productivity growth and income security.

In addition, the study highlights gaps in social protection, with 31 percent of gig workers lacking access to insurance, pension, or savings-linked benefits. Evidence from the survey suggests that workers with access to training and basic protections report greater financial stability and higher earning potential, reinforcing the case for targeted interventions.

Nilaya Varma, Co-Founder & CEO, Primus Partners, said “The gig economy has created scale and flexibility in India’s labour market. The next phase must focus on enabling skill development, income progression, and mobility so that gig work becomes a stepping stone to more sustainable livelihoods.”

There is a clear opportunity to strengthen the gig ecosystem through structured skilling pathways, portable benefits, and transition mechanisms into higher-value roles. Aligning platforms, policymakers, and industry around these priorities can unlock stronger workforce outcomes over the next decade.

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