By:– Rohit Aradhya, VP and Managing Director, App Security Engineering, Barracuda Networks
As the year closes, Rohit Aradhya, VP and Managing Director, App Security Engineering at Barracuda Networks, highlighted cybersecurity practices for enterprises to follow in 2026. “Tools don’t create cyber resilience, strategy does. For example, when AI becomes part of how you detect, respond and learn, it transforms operations, it stops being an add-on and becomes a force multiplier and helps to address sophisticated AI driven ransomware attacks.” “In an age of AI and quantum disruption, the best defence won’t be technology, it will be a security-aware culture of learning, agility, adaptability and purpose driven talent.”
By:– Prakash Ravindran, CEO and Director, InstiFI
2025 has been a defining year for India’s digital payments ecosystem. UPI’s rapid evolution, the rise of credit on UPI, increasing adoption of RuPay credit and debit cards, and the continued growth of net banking have collectively ushered the ecosystem into a new phase of maturity. The progress of Bharat Connect, India’s unified bill payment platform managed by NBBL, has further strengthened this momentum by making everyday payments more seamless, secure and widely accessible. Coupled with stronger cyber-safety initiatives led by the RBI, telecom networks and banks, public trust in digital payments has deepened meaningfully.
Looking ahead to 2026, digital payments will move beyond speed and convenience to become a true enabler of opportunity. Smarter credit pathways, higher net banking limits and increasingly interoperable infrastructure will empower businesses of every size from small merchants to large enterprises to scale with confidence. At InstiFI, our focus remains on shaping this next chapter by enabling borderless commerce, equipping merchants with intelligent financial tools and contributing to a future where digital payments accelerate ambition and inclusive growth.
By:– Harsha Solanki, VP GM Asia, Infobip
This year has shown that AI is the core engine driving customer engagement. During peak events like Black Friday and Cyber Monday, our platform recorded a staggering 12.2 billion interactions globally, with RCS experiencing a 277% surge in messaging traffic on Black Friday alone. And as the volume hits a record, AI enabled brands to deliver hyper-personalized omnichannel experiences without sacrificing speed or security. Customers demand faster and smarter interactions than ever before. By 2026, AI-powered agents are expected to manage up to 95% of routine interactions, providing instant and personalized support around the clock. They are evolving beyond basic FAQ bots into human-like, agentic models capable of complex, autonomous conversations, allowing human teams to focus on cases that require empathy and judgment.
Platforms like WhatsApp and RCS are becoming super apps, integrating messaging, marketing, and payments within a single interface to deliver complete customer journeys seamlessly. As AI matures and adoption scales, organizations that unify first-party and internal data while ensuring compliance will unlock the full potential of intelligent and trusted customer experiences. With regulatory frameworks such as the Digital Personal Data Protection Act (DPDA) and updated telecom cybersecurity rules shaping how data is collected and managed, growth in digital engagement can strengthen trust. Looking ahead, Infobip, with its secure infrastructure and our vast global network, will continue to create innovative solutions and enable the brands to create meaningful journeys.