Mahindra Steps Up EV, AI Skilling as Auto Technology Outpaces Workforce

India’s automotive industry faces a widening skills gap as electric vehicles, software-defined vehicles and advanced driver assistance systems increase the technical capabilities required across manufacturing and after-sales, according to a senior Mahindra & Mahindra executive.

For every 10 people trained to work on conventional internal combustion engine technologies, only one is currently trained to handle advanced automotive technologies, Pavan Kumar, Senior Vice President and Head of Sales, Customer Care and CX at Mahindra & Mahindra, said at the ASDC Annual Conclave 2026.

The shift is being driven by electric powertrains, software-defined vehicles, connected diagnostics, ADAS, predictive servicing and artificial intelligence, which are changing the skills required across vehicle manufacturing, dealerships and workshops.

“A modern automobile is no longer just a product of engineering,” Kumar said. “Now, it's a convergence of mechanical, electrical, software, digital and data capabilities.”

He said the challenge facing the industry is not a shortage of employment opportunities, but whether workers can be trained quickly enough to keep pace with technological change.

“It's a race between skill creation and the technology change that is happening as we speak,” Kumar said.

Mahindra Retrains ICE Workforce for EVs

Mahindra has responded to the transition by retraining its existing workforce instead of creating an entirely separate talent pool for electric vehicles.

When the automaker introduced its Born Electric vehicle range, it identified employees already working on conventional vehicle technologies and trained them to work on EVs, Kumar said.

The transition included structured reskilling programmes, global learning exposure, advanced technical training and collaboration with international experts, according to Kumar.

Mahindra currently operates 26 advanced training centres across 24 cities in 16 states and has more than 210 partnerships with educational institutes.

The automaker has trained more than 12,000 students in ICE and EV technologies over the past two years and around 2 lakh technical professionals over the past decade. It also operates around 200 “Tech Corners” aimed at providing hands-on technical learning.

Mahindra has also partnered with government Industrial Training Institutes under its Project HONAR programme to upgrade infrastructure, modernise processes and provide vocational training. The company is participating in the Pradhan Mantri Internship Scheme, with interns working across its facilities and receiving exposure to EV manufacturing.

Training Must Precede New Vehicle Launches

Kumar said the skills transition will have to extend beyond vehicle manufacturing to dealerships and after-sales operations as newer vehicles become increasingly complex.

The quality of the ownership experience will depend on whether service technicians and customer-facing staff are equipped to handle new technologies, he said.

He also called for a change in the way the industry prepares its workforce for new products.

“Training should not be followed after we launch something. It must precede any new launch,” Kumar said, adding that coordination between product development and workforce training remained a challenge that the industry needed to address.

The requirement assumes greater importance as electric vehicles combine high-voltage systems with software, connectivity and sophisticated electronics, increasing the technical capabilities required at dealerships and service workshops.

Kumar also said dealerships need to treat technicians as talent rather than merely headcount and offer them clearer career progression.

“For example, a service advisor who is working, a technician who is working in a workshop, he has to see his path, how he is going to become an entrepreneur in the next 10 years,” he said.

Providing such career pathways could improve employee retention across workshops and dealerships, he added.

AI for Skilling

Mahindra is also using artificial intelligence as part of its workforce capability-building efforts.

The company has launched an internal M.AI Academy to improve AI literacy and develop capabilities across the organisation. Kumar said AI could help companies expand the scale and quality of workforce training.

At the same time, Mahindra wants the industry to widen its talent pool by bringing more women, rural youth and first-time earners into automotive jobs.

Kumar said workplace redesign, ergonomic improvements and automation have helped create more opportunities for women across Mahindra’s manufacturing operations.

“Future growth depends on widening this doorway,” he said, calling for greater participation from rural youth and women in automotive skilling programmes.

The skills challenge comes as India looks to strengthen its position as a global automotive manufacturing and export hub. Kumar said vehicle exports reached 6.7 million units in FY26, up 24%, while India is now the world's third-largest automobile market.

He said technology, investment and demand are already supporting the industry's growth, but workforce readiness will be critical to India's ambition of becoming globally competitive in automotive manufacturing, exports and technology.

With inputs from Anurag Chaturvedi, Shahkar Abidi and Mukul Yudhveer Singh