Nielsen Positions India as Its Primary Global Innovation Engine, With 75% of Innovation Coming From Country: Report
The US-based media analytics company employs more than 5,000 people in India, roughly half its global workforce, as AI transforms advertising intelligence and audience measurement.
NEW DELHI— US-based media analytics firm Nielsen is positioning India as its primary global innovation engine, with approximately 75 per cent of its global innovation now originating in the country, according to a report by Daily Sun citing Moneycontrol.
Nielsen employs more than 5,000 people in India, accounting for roughly half of its worldwide workforce, with Bengaluru serving as its largest hub. The company is increasingly relying on its Indian teams to develop products, drive technology initiatives and work directly with global clients.
Chief Technology Officer Anil Goel said the company’s India operations were designed to function as a global innovation centre rather than a conventional global capability centre (GCC).
“Unlike traditional GCCs where India-based teams work under overseas counterparts, Nielsen’s local teams lead products, make decisions and work directly with global clients,” the report said, citing Goel.
The shift highlights India’s growing role in global technology development, particularly as companies deploy artificial intelligence (AI) to improve operational efficiency and develop new capabilities.
Although some markets generate higher revenues than India, Goel said the country’s rapid growth makes it one of Nielsen’s top 10 markets in terms of growth potential.
The company expects its presence in India to expand further following the addition of DoubleVerify, which specializes in advertising verification and brand safety. Goel also highlighted India’s technology-intensive workforce as a factor supporting the expansion of innovation activities in the country.
AI Transforms Advertising Intelligence
Artificial intelligence has significantly changed Nielsen’s advertising intelligence business, which tracks advertising expenditure across television, radio, newspapers, magazines and outdoor media in 30 to 40 major markets, including India and the United States.
Previously, the company relied on a combination of automation and manual processing to collect and analyze advertising information. More than 1,000 employees were involved in resolving gaps that existing technology could not address, the report said.
The adoption of AI and large language models has increased the share of work handled by machines from approximately 80-90 per cent to 97-98 per cent, according to Goel.
AI is also helping automate the tracking of brand visibility during sporting events and improve audience measurement across an increasingly fragmented media landscape.
These applications are becoming more important as consumers spread their attention across television, digital platforms, streaming services and other media channels, making it more challenging for advertisers to understand audience behaviour and evaluate campaign performance.
Changing Media Consumption Creates New Challenges
The growing use of generative AI platforms, including ChatGPT, Gemini and Claude, along with AI agents that assist consumers in making decisions, is creating new challenges for traditional media measurement methods, the report noted.
As consumer behaviour evolves, companies such as Nielsen face the task of adapting their measurement systems to understand how audiences discover information, engage with brands and make purchasing decisions across emerging digital environments.
Nielsen’s growing reliance on its Indian workforce for product development and AI-led innovation reflects the country’s expanding importance in the global technology ecosystem.
With its established technology talent base, expanding business opportunities and increasing responsibilities within multinational companies, India is emerging as a centre for innovation and product leadership rather than serving solely as a location for support operations.
For Nielsen, the strategy places India at the heart of its efforts to automate advertising intelligence, improve audience measurement and respond to the changing demands of the global media industry. (Source: IANS)
