The study estimates that generative AI can perform between nine and seventeen percent of tasks.

Generative artificial intelligence could replace eight to twelve percent of non-agricultural jobs in India, according to a special research report released by Wall Street brokerage firm Goldman Sachs on Wednesday. While the technology presents displacement risks, the investment bank noted that its overall impact will remain positive for the national economic growth outlook.

The study estimates that generative AI can perform between nine and seventeen percent of tasks currently undertaken by India non-agricultural workforce. Researchers highlighted that around 42 to 48 percent of employment will benefit from AI-assisted productivity gains, while the remaining workforce will stay largely unaffected by this transition.

Employment declines are expected to concentrate in routine clerical, technical, and back-office professional roles where repetitive tasks dominate. Conversely, demand for manual labor, craft workers, and machine operators may rise, as physical and interpersonal responsibilities remain difficult for automated systems to replicate efficiently.

Sector-wise, IT-enabled business process services, telecommunications, and postal operations face the highest substitution risks due to codifiable workflows. Meanwhile, healthcare, education, and financial services stand to benefit through AI-driven diagnostics, personalized learning, and advanced data modeling across routine operational functions.

Goldman Sachs projects that widespread adoption could boost annual labor productivity growth by approximately 0.4 percentage points over a ten-year horizon. The overall transition is expected to reallocate labor across occupations rather than trigger broad-based structural unemployment across key industries.