As India observes National Engineers’ Day, technology and engineering leaders across industries are highlighting the changing role of engineers, with a growing emphasis on systematic innovation, sustainable technology, digital infrastructure and solving complex real-world problems. From building Digital Public Infrastructure at population scale to transforming healthcare, cloud infrastructure, software engineering and enterprise technology, industry leaders say engineering today goes beyond technical execution. The focus is increasingly on creating solutions that are scalable, efficient, inclusive and capable of delivering meaningful outcomes.
Also read: Evolving Role of Engineering in Driving Innovation: Salesforce India
Ganesh Jayadevan, CTO, Sahamati, said: “For most of my career, engineers, myself included, spent more time fixing than building. In India, we even celebrated it: Jugaad. But as my friend Vinay Dhabolkar writes, we are steadily moving from improvisation to systematic innovation. And engineering from first principles. Digital Public Infrastructure is where I see it most powerfully. Build it well, open, interoperable, rights preserving, and it becomes a foundation for economic growth and inclusion. At 1.4 billion people, India is not a test bed. It is the real thing. The Account Aggregator ecosystem is the example I am proudest of. 220 million users. Over 500 million consents given. Services that simply did not exist before: MSME and personal lending, insurance, wealth management, personal finance, tax filing, all powered by consented, secure data flows. And critically, designed so that a citizen can share their financial data with a tap, without friction, without confusion. Good user experience is not a layer on top of infrastructure. Without good UX, we don’t serve the citizens. No single team achieved this. The best talent across Account Aggregators, banks, insurers, fintechs and technology partners built this together. Great engineering at scale can be a community effort. For an engineer who wants to build things that matter, this is a genuinely great time to be alive.”
Also read: Engineer’s Day: The Rise of AI and Machine Learning in Indian Engineering
Arvind Aravamudhan, Senior Director of Platform Engineering Harness, said: “Good engineering is often less about what one team can build and more about what their work enables others to achieve. The best engineering takes complexity out of the way, creates strong foundations for others to build on, and ultimately delivers outcomes that matter to customers and the business. It should also stand the test of time, continuing to scale as teams and organisations grow. What truly matters is judgement, curiosity and the ability to think beyond the problem in front of you to understand the outcome you are trying to create and work backwards from it. As AI makes building faster and more accessible, that engineering judgement becomes even more important: knowing not just what to build, but why it matters and what impact it should create. On Engineers’ Day, I want to celebrate the engineers whose work creates leverage for everyone around them helping teams build better, solve harder problems and turn engineering effort into meaningful outcomes.”
Engineering as a mindset
Abhilash Shetty, Vice President and Head of Engineering and AI, Visionet, said: “Engineering is a mindset, one driven by curiosity, a willingness to challenge convention, and a relentless pursuit of better ways to solve problems. As AI and emerging technologies reshape how we build new age systems, transform business processes, and create value, the role of engineers continues to evolve. Yet, what remains timeless is the ability to think critically, adapt, solve complex problems, and turn ideas into meaningful outcomes. With AI democratizing knowledge and expertise, the engineer’s role is evolving: from finding answers to framing better questions, challenging convention, and turning insight into impact. This Engineers’ Day, we at Visionet celebrate the engineers shaping our AI-Native journey, turning complexity into opportunity, challenges into possibilities, and ideas into impact.”
Engineering the next layer of healthcare
Asha BV, Senior Director – Global Software, Image Guided Therapy Systems R&D, Philips, said: “I am glad that Engineers in India, are now increasingly shaping the next operating layer of healthcare that will accelerate better care for more people. As AI moves from isolated tools to intelligence embedded across workflows and systems, the challenge is no longer simply to build smarter technology, but to make it trusted, scalable, and meaningful in the real world. Philips’ Future Health Index 2026 shows that 71% of Indian healthcare professionals report improved workflow efficiency with AI-enabled tools, a clear indication that the opportunity is already translating into real-world impact. The next frontier lies in integrating AI into the fabric of healthcare; connecting data, systems, and human expertise to make care more efficient, intelligent, and accessible. At Philips, we are focused on building not just smarter technologies, but a more intelligent healthcare ecosystem, one that enables clinicians to do more, empowers patients and ultimately makes better care possible for more people, around the world.”
From Building Faster to Building with Purpose
Priti Sawant, Founder and CEO, JoulestoWatts, said: “Engineering is entering a phase where the hardest questions are no longer just about what we can build, but what we should build and how responsibly we build it. As AI accelerates software development and digitalisation reshapes enterprises, the engineer’s role is becoming broader, connecting technical possibilities with business priorities, operational realities, and long-term impact. This is especially important as GCCs evolve into centres for product innovation, transformation, and global decision-making. At JoulestoWatts, we see this as contextual engineering, applying technology with a deep understanding of the enterprise, its people and the outcomes it needs to deliver. The engineers who create the greatest value will be those who can move beyond building faster to building with greater purpose, resilience, and efficiency. That is where engineering can play a defining role in creating a more sustainable future.”
Deepak Dastrala, CEO, Purple Fabric AI (A Business Unit of Intellect Design Arena), said: “On National Engineers’ Day, we celebrate the curiosity to ask better questions, the courage to challenge assumptions, and the care to build things people can depend on. As AI makes answers more abundant, the engineer’s judgement about what matters becomes even more valuable. A useful question can reveal a need we have missed or an assumption we should challenge. “How can we do this faster?” may lead to a better process. “Why does the customer have to do this at all?” may lead to a better service. This is why asking the right questions matters so much in the AI age. An answer can sound convincing even when it addresses the wrong need. We must be clear about the purpose, check the facts, and ask what could happen if we act on it. Good questions grow from understanding. Engineers need to know the people using a service, the reasons behind business rules, and the lessons from past mistakes. Connecting that knowledge helps people and AI recognise what is missing and explore better possibilities. AI can help us question our thinking, too. The responsibility for deciding what matters, and whether an answer is good enough to act on, remains ours. Leaders should give young engineers room to ask why, challenge familiar approaches, and learn from customers. Curiosity needs encouragement, especially when it questions an established decision. To engineers, my message is simple: use AI to expand what you can do. Stay curious about what people really need. The question you choose to pursue may be your most valuable contribution.”
Balancing technology evolution with engineering fundamentals
Abhishek Ranjan, Chief Technology Officer, Blue Machines AI, said: “Technology may evolve rapidly, but the fundamentals of engineering remain constant: curiosity, rigorous thinking, and a commitment to solving real problems. At Blue Machines, we’ve seen firsthand how the role of engineering continues to adapt alongside changing industry needs, from building for efficiency and scale to enabling greater intelligence, agility, and impact. What remains unchanged is the ability to simplify complexity, learn continuously, and translate ideas into meaningful outcomes that create lasting value.”
Along similar lines, Mitesh Jain, Regional VP, Akamai India, said: “Engineering has always been about turning complex challenges into practical solutions. AI, cloud computing and digitalisation are giving engineers new ways to build systems that are more efficient, resilient and sustainable. The opportunity lies in using these technologies thoughtfully to create lasting impact. As the role of engineering evolves, technical expertise must go hand in hand with a focus on scalability, efficiency and responsible use of resources. These principles will shape the technology we build for the future. At Akamai, we see this in the growing demand for digital infrastructure that can support data intensive applications at scale. Our distributed cloud and security platform brings applications closer to users, helping improve performance, resilience and efficiency. This National Engineers’ Day, we celebrate the engineers turning innovation into solutions that move businesses and society forward. The technology may change, but the purpose remains the same: solve problems and build a better way forward.”
Building efficient and sustainable infrastructure
Vinay Chhabra, Co-Founder and Managing Director at AceCloud, said: “The next phase of engineering will be about doing more with what we have, delivering greater performance while using resources more intelligently. This is especially important as AI drives demand for compute at an unprecedented pace. At AceCloud, we are strengthening India’s AI infrastructure with a focus on right-sized compute, efficiency and data sovereignty. For me, smart engineering means making deliberate choices about the infrastructure we build and how we use it, so that digital innovation can scale in a way that is efficient, resilient and sustainable.”
Empowering engineers to solve complex challenges
Subhodeep Ghoshal, Director – Software Engineering, Allstate India, said: “Technology has evolved from a support function into the foundation of modern business, placing engineers at the center of innovation and transformation. As we celebrate Engineers’ Day and this year’s theme, ‘Smart engineering for a sustainable future through innovation and digitalization’, it is important to create environments where engineers are empowered to experiment, innovate, and solve complex challenges with purpose. At Allstate India, we foster a culture that equips our engineers with the technologies, tools, and opportunities they need to do their best work. By integrating AI-powered capabilities into engineering workflows, we enable engineers to make more informed decisions, uncover deeper insights, and focus on solving high-value problems. This empowers our teams to innovate faster, build more effective solutions, and deliver meaningful business impact at scale. This Engineers’ Day, we celebrate engineers who are shaping the future through technology, innovation, and meaningful impact”
AI as an amplifier of engineering capabilities
Gaurav Tamotia, Partner and SAP Leader, EY Global Delivery Services, said: “Artificial Intelligence is reshaping the way organizations innovate, build products, and operate, making this one of the most significant shifts in engineering. In my interactions with teams and clients, I see engineers increasingly moving beyond routine execution to focus on solving complex challenges and driving greater business impact. By automating repetitive tasks and accelerating decision-making, AI is enabling engineers to spend more time on innovation, strategic thinking, and value creation. Rather than diminishing the role of engineers, AI is expanding the scope of what they can achieve. This shift calls for a new engineering mindset, one that combines technical expertise with adaptability, critical thinking, and a commitment to continuous learning. At EY GDS, we see AI as a powerful amplifier of human capability. The engineers who will thrive in this era are those who can effectively collaborate with AI while bringing uniquely human strengths to the table, including judgment, empathy, and contextual understanding. What excites me most is seeing how engineers are embracing these opportunities to solve real-world business challenges in new and impactful ways. On Engineers’ Day, we celebrate engineers who embrace change, learn continuously, and apply technology with purpose. Their contributions are helping shape a more innovative, resilient, and sustainable future for businesses, communities, and society.”
