India could unlock US$500-600 billion in additional GDP by 2035 through the adoption of agentic artificial intelligence, according to new research highlighted by Salesforce during a media briefing on the sidelines of Dreamforce 2026.
In the media briefing attended by People Matters, the company said India is moving rapidly from AI experimentation to implementation, with organisations increasingly deploying autonomous AI agents across customer service, operations and business workflows.
The findings were shared by Arundhati Bhattacharya, President and CEO of Salesforce South Asia, and Gavin Barfield, Vice-President and CTO, Solutions, ASEAN, Salesforce.
The projection comes as businesses worldwide accelerate investments in AI-powered automation while seeking measurable returns from emerging technologies.
India's agentic AI adoption gathers pace
According to Salesforce's latest India-focused research, 24% of business leaders in India have already deployed agentic AI, while adoption is delivering results faster than many organisations anticipated.
The study indicates that organisations deploying agentic AI are seeing an average return on investment within approximately eight months.
Salesforce also reported improvements in customer experience outcomes among adopters.
Key findings from the research include:
- 24% of leaders have already deployed agentic AI.
- Organisations report an average eight-month return on investment.
- Early adopters have recorded approximately 30% improvement in customer satisfaction scores.
- 58% of Global Capability Centres (GCCs) are investing in agentic AI.
- A further 29% of GCCs plan to scale deployments within the next year.
- Agentic AI could contribute US$500-600 billion to India's GDP by 2035.
The findings suggest enterprises are moving beyond pilot projects and beginning to embed AI agents into core business processes.
Enterprises focus on practical business outcomes
Salesforce positioned Dreamforce 2026 around the concept of the "agentic enterprise", describing a future where humans and AI agents work together using trusted data, applications and workflows.
During the briefing, executives emphasised that enterprises are increasingly looking beyond generative AI experimentation and focusing on operational use cases capable of delivering measurable business value.
The company noted that organisations are seeking AI systems that can perform tasks, make decisions within defined parameters and automate routine processes while maintaining governance and security controls.
Salesforce's approach centres on combining AI agents with enterprise data, applications and customer interactions to improve productivity and service delivery.
Air India showcases agentic AI deployment
One of the flagship customer examples highlighted during the briefing was Air India, which has expanded its use of Salesforce's Agentforce platform across customer service operations.
According to Salesforce, the airline has implemented AI-powered capabilities including automated email resolution, passenger name change automation and knowledge agents for service teams.
The company shared operational outcomes from the deployment, including:
- Internal refund turnaround times reduced from approximately 14 days to four hours.
- Passenger name change processing reduced from three days to around 30 minutes.
- Customer service teams gained access to AI-supported knowledge tools and automation capabilities.
The example reflects a broader trend among enterprises seeking to deploy AI in targeted business functions where efficiency gains can be measured directly.
India becomes a strategic market for AI growth
Salesforce highlighted India's growing importance within its global operations and AI strategy.
The company reported:
- More than 17,000 employees across seven locations in India.
- ₹13,385 crore revenue in FY25, representing 47% year-on-year growth.
- Nearly 3.9 million Trailblazers in its ecosystem and community.
- A decade of product development at its Hyderabad Centre of Excellence.
- A target to skill one million learners by 2030.
- Availability of Agentforce Voice in Hindi.
Salesforce executives also pointed to the continued expansion of India's GCC ecosystem as a factor supporting enterprise AI adoption across sectors.
Trust and governance remain central
Alongside growth opportunities, Salesforce stressed the importance of trust, governance and security in enterprise AI deployments.
The company showcased its Enterprise AI Harness framework, which incorporates elements such as trusted models, context, agency, actions, governance and security.
Executives said organisations increasingly want AI systems that operate within defined controls while maintaining transparency, compliance and oversight.
As businesses move from experimentation to large-scale deployment, governance frameworks are becoming as important as the underlying AI models themselves.
From experimentation to economic impact
The next phase of AI adoption in India is likely to be defined by execution rather than exploration. Businesses are under growing pressure to demonstrate tangible returns from technology investments while preparing their workforces for new operating models.
Salesforce's projection of a US$500-600 billion GDP contribution by 2035 underscores the scale of the economic opportunity being attached to agentic AI. Whether those gains materialise will depend on how quickly organisations can move from isolated use cases to enterprise-wide adoption while maintaining trust, governance and workforce readiness.