“The overall interest from recruiters in hiring neurodiverse talent remains limited, and we’ve been seeing a further slowdown in the last year or so. Many entry-level jobs have vanished courtesy of AI, even at some companies which had shown interest in hiring,” said Vineet Saraiwala, founder of inclusive livelihood platform Atypical Advantage.
The Trump administration’s DEI (diversity, equity and inclusion) pushback has also impacted multinationals who are reducing diversity hiring, especially for neurodiverse individuals, he added.
Whether AI makes things worse or better depends on whether AI will be designed to be inclusive of neurodiversity, said Nirmala Menon, chief executive of Interweave Consulting, a DEI solutions consulting firm.
“AI systems generally use standardisation for quick and effective scaling, which may conflict with the flexibility many neurodivergent employees need.” she said.
Business Case for Hiring
At the same time, with intentional focus on inclusive designing, AI could also augment the natural skills of neurodiverse talent by providing customisable interfaces that can adapt to different cognitive styles bringing value to everyone at work,” Menon added.
Geethanjali Ganapathy, cofounder at Orchvate, a social organisation helping build a neurodiverse and inclusive society, said there is a business case for hiring neurodiverse people.
“AI automation is indeed replacing some traditional roles, but it has also created a new demand for detailed, quality-driven data annotation and validation tasks-areas where neurodivergent talent truly excels,” she said. According to a recent white paper released by IT industry body Nasscom, 39% of the workforce in the 18-24 year group identifies themselves as neurodivergent. “This data point underscores a critical shift: neurodiversity is no longer a DEI issue,” Ganapathy said. “It is now integral to workforce readiness, economic opportunity, and future-proofing industries.”
Neurodivergent minds approach problems from unexpected angles, making them excellent innovators, and many high performers are on the spectrum, said Interweave’s Menon.
NEW OPPORTUNITIES
Nagarro, a German digital engineering company, said while the industry-wide AI impact has influenced hiring trends for certain roles, it has also opened up new opportunities, including building inclusive hiring processes for neurodiverse talent.
Nagarro has partnered with organisations such as Action for Autism and Atypical Advantage to bring in people on the spectrum for its TestingPro training initiative to equip neurodiverse individuals with skills in software testing.
“When companies embrace neurodivergent talent, they invite fresh perspectives that often lead to more creative thinking and better problem-solving,” said Shruti Tandon, managing director-People Enablement at Nagarro. RPG Group company CEAT has partnered with NGOs such as Mann, while Raychem RPG works with Karman, an organisation in disability hiring, especially individuals with autism.
The RPG Group hires people with diverse abilities under its inclusivity focus, said Riya Dalvi, chairperson – DEI. Raychem RPG, for example, plans to hire 20 people with disabilities, including neurodiverse individuals, this year.
Capgemini is committed to fostering an inclusive workplace through several initiatives designed to support neurodiverse candidates and employees, said Aarti Srivastava, its chief HR officer for India.
JP Morgan India said that searching for talent across all backgrounds, including neurodiverse talent, is a competitive advantage.