N Chandrasekaran Steps Down as Tata Sons Chairman After Decade at Helm

In an official statement, Chandrasekaran said he will not seek reappointment as chairman. He is expected to remain in the role until February 2027, when his current term ends. His exit follows months of uncertainty over his reappointment.

After spending three decades at Tata Consultancy Services (TCS), Chandrasekaran took charge of the sprawling Tata Group in 2017, overseeing businesses spanning steel, automobiles, hotels and information technology.

Over the next nine years, he expanded the group into sectors that were barely part of its traditional business map, including semiconductors, electronics manufacturing, electric vehicles, batteries, digital businesses, aviation and artificial intelligence.

Under Chandrasekaran, Tata Electronics entered semiconductor manufacturing and electronics. The group began building battery manufacturing capacity and expanded its electric vehicle ambitions. Tata Digital launched Tata Neu, an online shopping platform, while the group also moved deeper into mobile technology and 5G.

Tata Electronics is setting up a Rs 91,000-crore semiconductor fabrication plant in Dholera, Gujarat, along with a Rs 27,000-crore OSAT facility in Assam. Its battery business, Agratas, is building a 20 GWh cell manufacturing facility in Gujarat.

Aviation became another major focus. Tata Group acquired Air India from the government in 2022, but Chandrasekaran went beyond the acquisition of the national carrier.

The group brought Air India, Vistara and AirAsia India under a broader aviation strategy. Air India and Vistara were merged, while Air India Express and AirAsia India were also brought together as part of the consolidation.

The aviation expansion became one of the boldest bets of Chandrasekaran’s tenure and one of its most difficult. Air India required enormous investment, while its losses remained a concern as Tata worked to build a global airline group. Tata Sons’ FY26 results showed the scale of the challenge, with Air India’s losses widening sharply.

Yet, for all the attention surrounding Air India, semiconductors and electric vehicles, the foundation of Chandrasekaran’s legacy was built much earlier at TCS.

Before taking over Tata Sons, Chandrasekaran spent 30 years at TCS. He became its CEO in 2009 and remained in that position until taking over as Tata Sons chairman in 2017. Under his leadership, TCS became India’s most valuable company.

TCS was already a global IT company when Chandrasekaran became CEO, but the business continued to deepen its international presence and relationships with large global customers.

North America became its biggest market, while Europe also emerged as a major growth engine. Today, TCS has more than 584,000 employees and reported FY26 revenue of about $30 billion.

Chandrasekaran also advanced the idea of “One Tata”, aimed at making a group of more than 100 companies work more closely, use capital more effectively and create scale where possible.

The strategy involved consolidations and demergers. Tata Consumer Products was created by combining businesses of Tata Tea and Tata Chemicals. In aviation, the group moved towards an integrated airline structure. Tata Motors also separated its passenger vehicle business, including EVs, from commercial vehicles.

Chandrasekaran’s technology background also shaped the group’s next phase, with Tata pushing artificial intelligence into manufacturing, automobiles and other businesses.

In his 2026 New Year message, Chandrasekaran said the group’s new factories were being designed to be AI-first. He also pointed to Tata Motors using connected-vehicle data to predict real-world EV range.

His departure marks the approaching end of a decade in which Tata Sons expanded beyond its established businesses while pursuing major bets across technology, manufacturing, mobility, aviation and artificial intelligence.