July 14, 2026, (Inside AI) — Indian IT services firm LTM expects revenue from artificial intelligence to outpace its traditional services business, CEO Venu Lambu told Reuters on Monday. The company disclosed AI-native revenue of $150 million on a quarterly run-rate basis, or 12% of total revenue, for the first time.
The forecast comes amid a 23% year-to-date plunge in India's Nifty IT index, its worst since 2008, as investors fear AI models could disrupt conventional IT outsourcing. LTM's pivot signals a broader industry shift toward implementation of large language models from firms like Anthropic and OpenAI.
Anthropic Deal Anchors Enterprise AI Push
LTM signed a partnership with Anthropic to deploy Claude to enterprise clients, betting that models can create a new implementation market "with the right context at the right costs." Lambu said "pretty much all" deals now have an AI component, but expensive frontier models aren't needed for every business scenario.
He expects enterprise AI adoption to accelerate in the second half of fiscal year 2027. Projects start small, "but once you deliver a proof point to the customer, it just multiplies with the same customers," Lambu said. The strategy mirrors a growing industry consensus: IT firms must move from low-margin maintenance to high-value AI integration.
LTM's AI revenue comes from three AI-native businesses where AI is designed as a core component from the ground up. Enterprise AI—embedding AI into clients' technology stacks—isn't counted in that bucket, suggesting the real AI footprint could be larger. Larger peer HCLTech reported advanced AI revenue of $171 million in the June quarter, about 4.6% of overall revenue, highlighting varied disclosure practices.
Token Costs and Governance Shape Client Demand
A "big concern" for clients is token costs, Lambu said, as AI firms shift to usage-based pricing. LTM is helping companies establish governance frameworks to control usage and costs. This focus on cost management could differentiate IT providers in a market where model providers themselves are pushing enterprise adoption.
LTM posted a 6.1% year-on-year rise in first-quarter revenue, but the AI disclosure marks a turning point. Analysts note that Indian IT firms have historically been slow to break out AI revenue, making comparisons difficult. The move may pressure peers like TCS and Infosys to offer similar transparency.
The partnership with Anthropic also positions LTM against competitors aligning with OpenAI or Google. As enterprises grapple with model selection, IT firms that can orchestrate multi-model environments may gain an edge. Lambu's comments suggest LTM sees itself as a neutral integrator rather than a model builder.
Investor skepticism persists, however. The Nifty IT index's decline reflects fears that AI could automate coding and testing tasks that generate billable hours. But LTM's bet is that implementation complexity—security, compliance, legacy integration—will sustain demand for human-led services.
