Paytm Pivots to AI-First Future After Layoffs

 

New Delhi: Paytm founder Vijay Shekhar Sharma declared the fintech giant is transforming into an "AI-first" company, unveiling a quirky AI rap passbook feature and asserting that India can lead the world in AI applications. The announcement comes months after significant workforce reductions.

Speaking at Shiprocket’s Shivir: AI Commerce Edition, Sharma emphasized AI's critical future role: "Sooner or later, we’ll have to use AI as an employee—or even as a CFO." This shift follows Paytm streamlining its workforce by nearly 3,500 employees in Q1 2024, primarily in sales, after regulatory actions against Paytm Payments Bank.

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Sharma positioned AI as essential for filling operational gaps and enabling smarter, faster decision-making within a leaner organization. To illustrate AI's potential for both function and engagement, he introduced a pilot AI-powered passbook that transforms users' monthly spending data into a personalized rap song. Users can select genres, turning routine transactions into catchy lyrical summaries.

"It’s a fun way to engage users and help them make sense of their spending," Sharma stated, hinting at a near-future rollout. This follows Paytm's recent integration of Perplexity AI for conversational search within its app.

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Beyond Paytm, Sharma outlined a bold vision for India's AI opportunity: "We don’t have to build the models. What we have is scale and problems that matter. We can become the use-case capital of the world." He argued India's vast population and complex challenges make it the ideal testing ground for practical AI applications, rather than competing in core model development.

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The strategic pivot underscores Paytm's response to industry trends, betting on AI-driven efficiency and innovation as it navigates its next chapter. Sharma's message signals a future where leaner teams leverage AI as fundamental collaborators.

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