From Opinions Desk

The World AI Day was obsered on 16th of July. Seeing the rising popularity and usage of AI in the industry, it was only expected that quite a number of industry leaders expressed heir comments on the occasion. We published some of these earlier. Following are more comments on this theme –

“Brands have always aspired to give every customer the individual attention they deserve; to understand their interests, recommend what they may genuinely value; and build relationships that last. In many ways, that was easier for the corner shop, where the owner knew every customer personally. But as businesses moved online, hundreds of customers became millions. That intimacy was replaced by segments, cohorts and broad assumptions.

AI gives brands a real chance to bring that individual attention back, but at digital scale. It can notice patterns across millions of customer moments, understand intent faster. It can help brands engage people with far more relevance and timeliness. That is what deserves appreciation.

In the light of the above, on a day meant to celebrate AI, I think the most honest thing to celebrate is that it frees us up to do as humans. It allows us to think harder, connect deeper and build relationships that last.”

–Anand Jain, Co-Founder and Chief Marketing Officer, CleverTap

“AI is rapidly becoming the nervous system of Digital India. As AI transforms how we work, learn and innovate, it is also reshaping the cyber threat landscape. Our latest India Cyber Threat Report 2026 highlights how AI-assisted phishing, identity compromise and data integrity attacks are accelerating. Social engineering is emerging as one of the most effective attack vectors. This makes responsible, transparent and well-governed AI not just an innovation imperative, but a national cybersecurity imperative.

At Quick Heal Technologies, we believe AI should strengthen trust, not compromise it. That belief drives our AI-first cybersecurity innovations, from our patented GoDeep.AI technology to solutions that help combat digital fraud, protect personal data, and defend organisations against external threats such as impersonation and brand abuse. As regulations like the DPDP Act raise the bar for data protection, AI will play an increasingly important role in helping organisations stay secure and compliant.

On this AI Appreciation Day, we celebrate not just what AI can do, but how responsibly we choose to build and use it. The true measure of AI is not how intelligent it becomes, but how effectively it protects people, businesses and the digital future we are all creating together.”

—Dr Sanjay Katkar, Joint Managing Director, Quick Heal Technologies

“On AI Appreciation Day, organisations should celebrate not only the possibilities AI creates, but also the steps needed to use it responsibly. Sustainable AI success will depend on treating security, governance and innovation as complementary priorities rather than competing objectives.

Employees are often the first to identify opportunities for AI, bringing new tools into workflows long before formal policies are established. This reflects genuine enthusiasm for innovation, but it can also create blind spots around data protection, compliance and risk management. The challenge is not preventing the use of AI, but ensuring its use aligns with organisational and regulatory requirements.

Forward-looking organisations are responding by developing practical frameworks for responsible AI adoption. This includes understanding which AI tools are being used, setting clear expectations for employees and ensuring sensitive data remains protected. When governance supports innovation rather than restricting it, businesses can create a culture where AI delivers value without introducing unnecessary risk.”

—Parag Khurana, Country Manager, India, Barracuda Networks

“The real promise of AI for India’s MSMEs is not making a small business operate like a large enterprise. It is to remove repetitive work and make complex decisions easier, without taking control away from them. In accounting, AI can help surface errors before they become penalties, suggest the next step in a filing, simplify voucher posting and make compliance workflows easier to navigate, so a business owner spends less time reacting to problems and more time running the business.

However, adoption will depend on trust. Small businesses need AI that is accurate, explainable, secure and affordable, not a black box making financial decisions on their behalf. At BUSY, our focus is on embedding intelligence into familiar accounting workflows so users gain speed without having to completely change the way they work. AI should support human judgement, not replace it, and its value should ultimately be measured in time saved, errors prevented and better decisions made.”

—Brijesh Agarwal, CEO, Busy Infotech

“On World AI Appreciation Day, it is important to recognise AI’s potential not just as a tool for automation, but as a force for building more trusted, meaningful customer experiences. As customer expectations continue to rise, the focus of India’s CX story has moved from adding more channels to earning customer trust in every interaction. Today, 96% of brands automate parts of their journeys, yet only 27% use an orchestration platform and barely half possess API-ready tools. This leaves customer experiences fragmented and data governance inconsistent. Customers don’t leave because a brand is offline; they leave when every conversation feels like starting from scratch. That gap is also a reminder of what AI can do at its best: help brands make interactions more relevant, consistent, and human at scale. But realizing that value depends on using AI responsibly, with context, identity, and consent built in from the start.

At Infobip, we view ethics as an engineering discipline, not just a policy document. For us, responsible innovation means building agentic, AI-powered platforms where privacy, DPDP compliance, and human oversight are part of the architecture, so businesses can scale automation with confidence and accountability. Responsible advancement to us means helping businesses move from experimental bots to transparent, governed customer journeys, where AI augments human judgment and every message can stand up to scrutiny – from regulators, from customers, and from our own teams.”

—Paritosh Gandhi, Country Head, India, Infobip “

AI Appreciation Day is a timely reminder of how rapidly AI has become an integral part of the way we work, recruit and make decisions. AI is helping organisations automate repetitive tasks, uncover meaningful insights from data and improve efficiency. However, its greatest value lies in enabling people to focus on what humans do best. It is critical thinking, creativity and relationship-building, rather than replacing them.

In recruitment, AI can streamline hiring by automating routine processes, improving candidate matching, and enhancing the overall hiring experience. Yet, successful hiring still depends on human judgment. Qualities such as cultural fit, leadership potential, adaptability, and emotional intelligence are best assessed through human experience and intuition. Organisations that combine AI’s speed with recruiters’ expertise will have a distinct advantage in attracting and hiring top talent.

As AI continues to evolve, businesses must prioritise responsible adoption by ensuring transparency, fairness and continuous upskilling of their workforce. The future belongs to organisations that are people-first and AI-enabled; not AI-first. This balanced approach will help companies attract exceptional talent, foster innovation and build resilient workplaces.”

–Yashwant Singh, Founder & CEO, AmbitionHire

These comments show that the industry leaders have not only focused on the advantages of AI in business, but they have also thought about how AI can become an assistant of a humans-first environment effectively. It is to be seen how far these aspirations materialise in futre.