Data & AI Jobs in India: Who's Hiring Right Now (Oct 2026)

You are applying for data and AI roles in India and want to know who is actually hiring before you spend another week sending generic applications. Here is a dated snapshot of the market, taken on 14 October 2026, and a plan you can act on in the next seven days.

The market right now, in numbers#

The JobRise live jobs feed shows 158 open Data & AI listings in India on 14 October 2026. You can see the current list on the JobRise data jobs hub for India. Of those, 139 were posted in the last 30 days, and 79 in the last 7 days alone.

That pace matters. Roughly half the market refreshed within a week, which means the roles you see today were not posted three months ago and left to rot. Fresh listings usually mean a live hiring manager behind them.

For scale, the JobRise Hiring Report for India shows 1,867 open listings across all categories in the country, with 1,345 posted in the last 30 days. Data and AI is a meaningful slice of that, not a fringe.

One warning before you read further: these are counts of open listings on one feed, not a market survey. Treat them as a snapshot of what is visible, not as the whole truth about Indian hiring.

Who is hiring, by name#

Ten companies carry the most open Data & AI listings in this snapshot. Some are direct employers, some are recruiters or staffing firms that hire on behalf of clients.

• Bosch Group has 11 open listings, including "Enterprise Digital & AI Leadership".
• Okta has 7, including "Senior Data Analyst".
• V2 AI has 4.
• Outreach has 3, including "Director of Applied Science and Engineering - Knowledge Graphs & AI".
• Coursera has 3, including "Enterprise Agentic AI Architect".
• Stripe has 3, including "Strategy and Analytics Business Partner".
• Google has 3.
• Lokal App has 3.
• Mongodb has 3.
• 2070Health has 3.

Other named roles in the feed give a sense of the spread: "Data Analyst" at Ericsson, "People Business Intelligence Analyst" at Godaddy, and a fresher-facing "Hiring Generative AI Engineer - Freshers 2026/27 (Computer Science or AI Only)" at Digitals AI Inc.

Where the jobs are#

Bengaluru dominates with 53 open listings, more than the next four cities combined. Hyderabad follows with 9, then Mumbai and Gurugram with 8 each, and Pune with 6.

If you are in Bengaluru, you have the widest choice and the most competition. If you are elsewhere, remote-friendly roles and relocation-ready profiles still matter, because the feed shows listings clustered in these five cities.

What the job-type mix says#

Full-time roles account for 157 of 158 listings. Contract roles account for 1.

That is an unusually lopsided mix. It tells you employers want permanent headcount in data and AI right now, not project-based contractors. For you, that means the standard advice about chasing short contracts to break in is weaker than usual this month.

The mix also shows the market is spread across four kinds of employers: big tech names like Google, Okta, Stripe, and Mongodb; established corporates like Bosch Group and Ericsson; startups and product firms like Lokal App, V2 AI, and 2070Health; and service or staffing firms like Trigent Software Private Limited and Digitals AI Inc that hire at volume for client work. Public sector and non-profit roles appear too, such as Clinton Health Access Initiative.

What pay actually looks like#

Only 19 of 158 listings show salary at all. That is the single most useful reality check in this data: most employers in data and AI in India still hide pay.

Where pay is posted, the spread is wide. As quoted on the listings: "Data Analyst" at Clinton Health Access Initiative shows ₹3.0-4.0 LPA; "Data Analyst" at Yulu Bikes shows ₹7.0-12.0 LPA; "Data Analyst" at Millions Advisory shows ₹5.0-17.0 LPA; "Data Analyst L5" at Trigent Software Private Limited shows ₹10.8-10.8 LPA; "Data Analyst" at PayU shows ₹7.0-15.0 LPA; "Data Analyst" at Appitsimple infotek Pvt. Ltd. shows ₹1.0-3.0 LPA.

Treat these as posted figures, not promises. Ranges vary widely by city, company, and experience level, so verify current pay on the official source before you negotiate.

The entry-level problem#

Only 1 of 158 listings looks entry-level by title, "Junior R&D Engineer (GEN AI/ML)" at Ubisoft. The rest assume prior experience.

This is the blunt part. The Data & AI market in India in October 2026 is hiring experienced people first. If you are a fresher, you are competing for a very thin slice, plus roles like the Digitals AI Inc fresher listing that are explicitly gated to Computer Science or AI graduates.

Do not read this as hopeless. Read it as needing a different route: internships, contract-to-hire, referrals, and portfolio projects that substitute for years of experience.

How to apply this week#

Start with the freshest listings. Filter the data jobs hub for India for roles posted in the last 7 days, since 79 of 158 landed there.

Apply direct when you can. A careers page or a recruiter email beats a black-hole portal.

Mirror the listing's own keywords in your resume. If the role says "Applied Science" and "Knowledge Graphs", use those exact phrases where they honestly describe your work. The fastest way to check whether your resume passes the filters is to run it through the free ATS checker before you send it.

Worked example. A weak resume bullet reads: "Worked on data analysis projects using Python and SQL." Rewritten to match an Okta-style "Senior Data Analyst" listing, it becomes: "Built SQL and Python pipelines that cut weekly reporting time by 60%, serving 4 product teams." Same work, but now it carries tools, scope, and an outcome a hiring manager can picture.

A 7-step plan#

• List 10 target companies from the snapshot above and note which are direct employers versus staffing firms.
• Open the data jobs hub for India and shortlist roles posted in the last 7 days first.
• Rewrite your resume for each role, mirroring the listing's exact keywords for tools, methods, and domain.
• Run every version through the free ATS checker and fix formatting before you submit.
• Find one referral per target company on LinkedIn or alumni groups, and send a short, specific message.
• Track everything in a spreadsheet: company, role, date applied, contact, and next follow-up date.
• Follow up once after 5 working days, then move on instead of waiting.

Free tools#

• Data & AI jobs in India
• JobRise Hiring Report: India
• free ATS resume checker

FAQ#

Which companies are hiring the most for Data & AI in India right now?

Bosch Group leads with 11 open listings, followed by Okta with 7 and V2 AI with 4. Outreach, Coursera, Stripe, Google, Lokal App, Mongodb, and 2070Health each have 3.

Are these Data & AI jobs mostly full-time?

Yes. 157 of 158 open listings are full-time, with only 1 contract role in the snapshot. Employers in this space are hiring permanent headcount right now.

Is Bengaluru the only good city for data jobs in India?

No, but it is the biggest by far with 53 open listings. Hyderabad has 9, Mumbai and Gurugram have 8 each, and Pune has 6.

What salary should I expect for a Data Analyst role in India?

Posted ranges in this snapshot run from ₹1.0-3.0 LPA at Appitsimple infotek Pvt. Ltd. to ₹10.8 LPA at Trigent Software Private Limited, with most Data Analyst roles in the ₹5-15 LPA band. Only 19 of 158 listings show pay, so verify current figures on the official source.

Can freshers get Data & AI jobs in India right now?

Only 1 of 158 listings is clearly entry-level by title, so the odds are tight. Look for fresher-gated roles like the one at Digitals AI Inc, plus internships and portfolio projects that stand in for experience.