HCLTech expands Pega partnership to accelerate AI-led legacy modernisation

Indian IT services firm HCLTech has expanded its collaboration with Pegasystems to help enterprises modernise legacy systems through AI-powered automation, as Indian IT services firms increasingly lean on ecosystem partnerships to accelerate enterprise AI adoption.

The partnership combines HCLTech AI Force with Pega Blueprint, enabling organisations to transform ageing and siloed systems into cloud-native, AI-powered applications. The companies said the joint offering will use AI-led discovery and modernisation capabilities to help enterprises reduce technical debt while improving agility and operational efficiency.

The move comes as enterprises worldwide continue to grapple with the cost and complexity of maintaining legacy infrastructure. Instead of conventional migration programmes, HCLTech and Pega are positioning the offering as a more comprehensive modernisation strategy aimed at retiring older systems altogether.

A central feature of the collaboration is the use of generative and agentic AI to automate system discovery, documentation and transformation processes.

“Our long-standing partnership with Pega continues to inspire real innovation,” said Sadagopan Singam, executive vice-president and global head of enterprise platforms and edge services at HCLTech.

“By combining HCLTech AI Force with Pega Blueprint, we are making legacy modernization faster, smarter and more accurate. This solution reflects our vision to lead in AI-driven transformation and deliver genuine business value with minimal disruption,” he said.

John Higgins said enterprises increasingly require modernisation initiatives that preserve security and resilience while accelerating transformation.

“By working with HCLTech and leveraging AI Force within Pega Blueprint, we're helping clients accelerate application and workflow modernization with speed, quality and measurable outcomes,” Higgins said.

The expanded collaboration reflects a broader trend across India's IT services sector, where firms are rapidly building partnerships around AI platforms, cloud ecosystems and foundational models.

Earlier this year, Infosys expanded its collaboration with OpenAI to help enterprises move AI projects from pilot stages to scaled deployments. The partnership combines AI models with transformation frameworks designed to support enterprise adoption at scale.

Infosys also deepened collaborations with Intel and Anthropic to strengthen agentic AI infrastructure and industry-specific AI solutions.

The shift signals a broader change in strategy for large IT services companies. Rather than building every capability internally, firms are increasingly creating partner ecosystems around AI platforms and automation technologies to shorten implementation timelines and strengthen enterprise offerings.