Indian banks move beyond AI pilots, scale generative AI for revenue growth: AWS

Kiran Jagannath of AWS India said the focus is shifting from productivity to “agentic AI”, where autonomous agents execute complex business tasks
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Indian financial institutions are quickly advancing past experimental applications of Generative AI to deploy the technology at scale, shifting focus from cost efficiency to actual revenue generation, according to a senior Amazon Web Services (AWS) executive.

Kiran Jagannath, Head of FSI and Conglomerates at AWS India and South Asia, observed that early AI discussions centered on productivity, but the conversation now centers on “agentic AI”—intelligent systems capable of autonomously managing sophisticated workflows. He anticipates this will dominate banking technology strategies nationally over the next three years.

“India’s financial sector presents remarkable opportunities. Over the past decade, digital transformation has reshaped the landscape. Post-pandemic, when physical branches became inaccessible, digital channels suddenly transformed from secondary to primary customer engagement platforms for banks and insurance providers,” Jagannath explained.

From Efficiency to Revenue Growth

The executive highlighted how AI implementations now directly contribute to top-line performance. For instance, fintech company Cashfree streamlined merchant onboarding using Generative AI, compressing a previously hours-long process into under ten minutes, significantly reducing business attrition during onboarding.

“Earlier emphasis on productivity gains has evolved. While those applications are now operational, current focus centers on how autonomous systems can optimize entire business workflows. Though we still discuss efficiency, these operational improvements fundamentally drive revenue expansion,” he emphasized.

Modernizing Core Infrastructure

Jagannath identified a pivotal transformation underway—the modernization of legacy banking infrastructure. After years of overlaying digital interfaces on aging systems, financial institutions are pursuing divergent modernization paths.

Some organizations adopt “hollowed-core” strategies by fragmenting existing systems, while others implement “dual-engine” models—migrating new customers to cloud-native platforms while incrementally upgrading legacy architecture.

Disaster Recovery Innovation

The BSE provides illustration, Jagannath noted. Collaborating with an AWS partner, the exchange developed a contingency system activating within 15 minutes of brokerage platform failures, ensuring Futures & Options investors can liquidate positions during outages.

Looking forward, Jagannath highlighted evolving C-suite dynamics, with technology leaders gaining increased strategic influence. “Within three years, autonomous systems will drive experiential innovation and transform both technical and business processes,” he projected.

While quantum computing holds promise, he considers agentic AI the most imminent transformative force. As technological complexity lowers, he stressed: “Cross-functional collaboration—with business and technical teams collectively solving problems—grows essential. Cultural adaptation will prove critical, necessitating executive leadership.”

Published on December 25, 2025