SaaS

India’s next $100B SaaS wave is here — fueled by AI-native products, global ambitions, and reimagined tools for enterprise outcomes, talent, and trust.

India's AI Leap: Building Global Giants from the Ground Up

The AI era presents Indian startups with an unparalleled opportunity to build dominant global platforms. In the SaaS/cloud era, Indian companies started a decade late, often targeting smaller markets or niche solutions. But AI is rewriting the rules, reshaping major SaaS markets long dominated by Salesforce, ServiceNow, and others. This time, Indian startups are starting at the same line as their global counterparts. We now have successful SaaS pioneers who have shown how to sell globally from India, and open-source foundation models like Llama and DeepSeek providing strong building blocks. With India’s exceptional talent, the opportunity is clear: think bigger, go after the largest markets, and challenge incumbents. Over the next decade, India has a real shot at creating $50B-$100B global AI companies—and at Elevation, we’re thrilled to be part of this once-in-a-lifetime moment.

Scaling India’s Talent: The Next Wave of Global Services

India produces 10 million college graduates annually, yet we haven’t fully harnessed this vast, young, and skilled workforce to serve the world. The next generation of IT services and BPO (3.0/4.0) must blend AI with human expertise—leveraging automation without sidelining people. India’s strength lies in its talent, and the biggest opportunities will come from models that combine technology with large-scale employment, rather than purely high-margin, highly automated services. By building people+tech-driven global service businesses, we can create millions of jobs, drive economic growth, and position India as the world’s service hub once again.

Reinventing B2B Buying: A Smarter, More Interactive Experience

A next-generation B2B buyer experience should make it seamless to find the best-fit solution for any need. This means guiding buyers through the process—helping them craft the right requirements or RFP documents, build vendor assessment scorecards, and automate initial vendor filtering. Key features would include recorded video demos addressing specific requirements, with vendors having the ability to review, add more videos, and engage with buyer queries directly on the platform. Each selected vendor would have a dedicated vendor interaction room, consolidating all conversations, documents, and content for streamlined engagement. Buyers could track their comments, scores, and vendor ratings while ensuring vendors have a clear opportunity to address gaps and receive feedback—creating a more transparent and efficient decision-making process.

Beyond the Giants: How India SaaS is Set to Disrupt the Status Quo

India’s SaaS spending is poised to exceed expectations. Here’s why: The formalization of the economy is accelerating. Just a few years ago, India had 60 million enterprises contributing to a $2T GDP. In the next five years, GDP is projected to reach $6–8T, with a more consolidated base of 15–17 million enterprises. SaaS adoption closely follows cloud penetration. A key insight Aadit of Zepto was the near 1:1 correlation between cloud and SaaS spend—an observation supported by industry data. India’s cloud spend is currently estimated at $10–15B (with $8B in public cloud), having tripled in the last five years. Initially, major players like SAP, Salesforce, and Microsoft dominate, but as the market expands, the long tail of SaaS providers is set to grow exponentially.

Building India’s Own Software Giants: A $100B Opportunity by 2035

India’s tech narrative has long been defined by global outsourcing, but a transformative shift is underway. While multinational players dominate today’s $20 billion domestic software market, the landscape is changing fast. As highlighted by us in the report by SaaSBoomi & 1Lattice, Beyond The Valley: Unlocking India’s $100B Domestic Software Opportunity, this market is set to expand fivefold by 2035—creating a $100 billion opportunity. With Indian companies poised to capture up to 50% of this growth, the time is ripe for homegrown software giants to emerge. From procurement and people management to CRM and compliance, vast untapped opportunities exist for founders ready to build.

The Next-Gen CRM: Optimizing for Outcomes, Not Just Actions

Traditional CRMs and process orchestrators focus on the doer first, treating the desired outcome as an afterthought. This approach leads to inefficiencies, requiring teams to navigate complex workflows before achieving their objectives. The future of CRM will flip this model upside down—starting with what needs to be accomplished and optimizing the path to get there with minimal resources. By prioritizing outcomes rather than tasks, next-generation CRMs will redefine productivity, enabling organizations to achieve more with less friction.

Pressing Need for Cybersecurity at Scale

Cybersecurity and data privacy have never been more critical for India. With the rapid rise in data breaches, leaks, OTP frauds, and impersonation scams, there’s a pressing need for an India-focused solution that protects both enterprises and consumers. A well-built solution could not only address these challenges domestically but also scale beyond borders to become a global player in the space.

Productivity Reimagined: The Rise of Efficient Part-Time Teams

There's a significant untapped potential in creating an outsourced consulting model that leverages primarily part-time workers, specifically those available for 4-5 hours daily. This necessitates innovation across operational processes, including seamless handovers and specialized software, to ensure productivity parity with full-time teams. Furthermore, novel HR practices are crucial to attract, retain, and maximize the job satisfaction of this workforce. This model, applicable across diverse sectors like BPO, IT consulting, and legal services, taps into a vast, underutilized talent pool, offering both operational efficiency and enhanced employee well-being.