Paytm Bets Big on AI as Core Revenue Driver: Vijay Shekhar Sharma

Paytm founder and CEO Vijay Shekhar Sharma announced that the company is treating artificial intelligence (AI) as a core business vertical rather than just a support tool. Speaking during the Q2 FY26 earnings call, Sharma said AI will soon become a key revenue line item, shaping new products and services across the fintech ecosystem.

“AI is a revenue line item,” Sharma said. “AI brings newer services, newer businesses — phenomenally more things we can do.”

AI-Led Merchant Ecosystem

Sharma revealed that Paytm is piloting AI-driven subscription services for merchants, which will later evolve into an ‘AI commerce cloud’ in the company’s financial reporting. He explained that these AI-based digital assistants will act as virtual COOs, CFOs, or CMOs for small businesses — offering enterprise-grade intelligence to India’s MSME sector.

“Large companies rely on global firms like Accenture or Snowflake. We’re bringing the same capability to small businesses in India,” he said.

Sharma also hinted that the Paytm Soundbox will transform into a smart, interactive device, capable of multilingual communication and customer interaction. “Soundbox will sound like a feature phone someday. I mean, this will be like a smartphone,” he said.

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Partnership with Groq for Real-Time AI

Paytm’s AI initiatives are being accelerated through a new partnership with US-based Groq, a company known for real-time AI inference technology. The collaboration will see Paytm and its associate entities deploy GroqCloud, powered by Groq’s Language Processing Unit (LPU), to achieve faster and more cost-efficient AI performance than traditional GPU systems.

This integration will boost Paytm’s capabilities in transaction processing, fraud detection, risk management, and customer engagement, forming the foundation for India’s “most advanced AI-driven payments and financial services platform.”

“AI is Not Just for Cost Cuts”

Sharma emphasised that Paytm’s AI strategy goes beyond operational efficiency, aiming to generate new monetisation opportunities.

“Cost cut is something we were already doing. AI just accelerated it and opened deeper opportunities to optimise,” he said. “I’m selling revenue line items and creating products that otherwise couldn’t have existed.”

He added that AI will power merchant-level insights and decision-making, helping cross-sell AI-enabled products across Paytm’s vast merchant base.

Global Expansion and Technology Licensing

On international ambitions, Sharma said Paytm plans to license its full hardware, software, and services stack to local partners in foreign markets.

“We will give it to a partner who will run it in that country — this is like PayPal,” he said, adding that Paytm’s goal is to be recognised globally for world-class technology, not as a low-cost alternative.

While Paytm’s Q2 FY26 profit slipped to ₹21 crore due to a gaming business write-down, revenue rose 24% year-on-year to ₹2,061 crore.

Sharma concluded by reiterating that AI will soon have a dedicated revenue stream in Paytm’s financials, positioning the company at the forefront of AI-led fintech innovation.

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