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Automation Anywhere Highlights Agentic AI Adoption and Future Trends at IMAGINE 2026
Automation Anywhere, a global leader in agentic process automation (APA), unveiled a suite of new capabilities during its IMAGINE 2026 conference in Bengaluru. The company’s APA platform—already in use by thousands of firms in healthcare, financial services, retail, telecommunications, and the public sector—promises to let enterprises run operations autonomously at scale.
In a live discussion with DH’s Uma Kannan, Automation Anywhere’s co‑founder and COO Ankur Kothari, along with Chief AI and Development Officer Adi Kuruganti, the team outlined the sectors where autonomous solutions are gaining momentum. Kothari highlighted three key areas: IT service management (ITSM) service desks, customer service and support, and full‑department autonomy.
Within ITSM, the autonomous service desk can resolve common queries on its own, freeing human agents to tackle more complex issues. In customer service, agents handle routine questions while simultaneously upskilling to support sales and other high‑value activities. Across entire departments, teams in finance, IT, and operations are moving beyond ticket‑closing roles to proactive threat intelligence and infrastructure management.
Kothari also turned the spotlight to healthcare, where administrative tasks currently occupy roughly 40 % of clinicians’ time. By automating these duties, doctors could devote a larger share of their day to patient care, potentially boosting both quality and efficiency.
When asked whether increased automation threatens jobs, Kothari acknowledged that roles evolve but new opportunities emerge. He cited the ride‑sharing example, noting how the market grew from about $1 billion to $10 billion after Uber’s entry. He stressed that reskilling is essential, as AI can accelerate the creation of higher‑value work.
The conversation also touched on the competitive landscape for AI startups. Kothari noted that Automation Anywhere was built between the U.S. and India, illustrating that world‑class companies can emerge from diverse locations. He encouraged Indian startups to focus on enterprise outcomes, emphasizing that such ventures require significant investment in technology, governance, and security.
Kuruganti outlined broader tech trends shaping enterprises. He said the industry will see a contest over the “core orchestration layer” that manages AI agents. While models themselves will become widely available, the real value lies in applications that can achieve high gross margins. Kuruganti described the company’s vision of a universal orchestration layer that can coordinate agents built for specific contexts, avoiding the complexity of multiple orchestration systems.
The company also highlighted challenges in adoption. In sensitive domains such as claims adjudication, prior authorisation in healthcare, and loan processing, accountability remains a concern. Although agents can act autonomously, the human operator ultimately owns the outcome. Kuruganti said that the future of agentic AI will involve a mix of deterministic and cognitive agents, currently about an 80‑20 split, with a potential shift toward more cognitive decision‑making as confidence grows.
Automation Anywhere’s new capabilities aim to support this evolution by providing a platform that can orchestrate multiple agents across enterprise workflows. The APA platform already powers autonomous service desks, customer support automation, and department‑wide orchestration in sectors such as finance and healthcare.
In summary, Automation Anywhere’s IMAGINE 2026 presentation underscored the growing adoption of agentic AI across IT service management, customer support, and departmental autonomy. The company highlighted the need for reskilling, the competitive importance of a universal orchestration layer, and the ongoing challenges of accountability in mission‑critical processes. As enterprises continue to integrate autonomous agents, the focus will shift from building models to deploying high‑margin applications that deliver tangible business impact.
In a live discussion with DH’s Uma Kannan, Automation Anywhere’s co‑founder and COO Ankur Kothari, along with Chief AI and Development Officer Adi Kuruganti, the team outlined the sectors where autonomous solutions are gaining momentum. Kothari highlighted three key areas: IT service management (ITSM) service desks, customer service and support, and full‑department autonomy.
Within ITSM, the autonomous service desk can resolve common queries on its own, freeing human agents to tackle more complex issues. In customer service, agents handle routine questions while simultaneously upskilling to support sales and other high‑value activities. Across entire departments, teams in finance, IT, and operations are moving beyond ticket‑closing roles to proactive threat intelligence and infrastructure management.
Kothari also turned the spotlight to healthcare, where administrative tasks currently occupy roughly 40 % of clinicians’ time. By automating these duties, doctors could devote a larger share of their day to patient care, potentially boosting both quality and efficiency.
When asked whether increased automation threatens jobs, Kothari acknowledged that roles evolve but new opportunities emerge. He cited the ride‑sharing example, noting how the market grew from about $1 billion to $10 billion after Uber’s entry. He stressed that reskilling is essential, as AI can accelerate the creation of higher‑value work.
The conversation also touched on the competitive landscape for AI startups. Kothari noted that Automation Anywhere was built between the U.S. and India, illustrating that world‑class companies can emerge from diverse locations. He encouraged Indian startups to focus on enterprise outcomes, emphasizing that such ventures require significant investment in technology, governance, and security.
Kuruganti outlined broader tech trends shaping enterprises. He said the industry will see a contest over the “core orchestration layer” that manages AI agents. While models themselves will become widely available, the real value lies in applications that can achieve high gross margins. Kuruganti described the company’s vision of a universal orchestration layer that can coordinate agents built for specific contexts, avoiding the complexity of multiple orchestration systems.
The company also highlighted challenges in adoption. In sensitive domains such as claims adjudication, prior authorisation in healthcare, and loan processing, accountability remains a concern. Although agents can act autonomously, the human operator ultimately owns the outcome. Kuruganti said that the future of agentic AI will involve a mix of deterministic and cognitive agents, currently about an 80‑20 split, with a potential shift toward more cognitive decision‑making as confidence grows.
Automation Anywhere’s new capabilities aim to support this evolution by providing a platform that can orchestrate multiple agents across enterprise workflows. The APA platform already powers autonomous service desks, customer support automation, and department‑wide orchestration in sectors such as finance and healthcare.
In summary, Automation Anywhere’s IMAGINE 2026 presentation underscored the growing adoption of agentic AI across IT service management, customer support, and departmental autonomy. The company highlighted the need for reskilling, the competitive importance of a universal orchestration layer, and the ongoing challenges of accountability in mission‑critical processes. As enterprises continue to integrate autonomous agents, the focus will shift from building models to deploying high‑margin applications that deliver tangible business impact.
