AI Is Rewriting the Economics of OutsourcingSKIP TO CONTENT
Harvard Business Review LogoProcess management<br>AI Is Rewriting the Economics of Outsourcing
by Abhinav Agrawal
June 5, 2026
Jorg Greuel/Getty Images
Post<br>Post<br>Share<br>Save<br>Get PDF<br>Buy Copies<br>Print
Summary.<br>Generative AI is changing the economics that fueled decades of outsourcing growth by automating many routine, rules-based tasks that companies once sent offshore for labor savings. Rather than...more<br>Leer en españolLer em português
Post<br>Post<br>Share<br>Save<br>Get PDF<br>Buy Copies<br>Print
For more than three decades, outsourcing has rested on a simple economic idea: If work can be defined, standardized, monitored, and moved to a lower-cost labor market, someone else can often do it more cheaply.
Abhinav Agrawal is a partner and managing director in AlixPartners’s digital practice based in Dallas.
Post<br>Post<br>Share<br>Save<br>Get PDF<br>Buy Copies<br>Print
Read more on Process management or related topics Supply chain management , Operations strategy , Globalization , Generative AI , International business and Corporate strategy
Partner Center
Harvard Business Review Logo<br>About Us<br>Careers<br>Privacy Policy<br>Cookie Policy<br>Copyright Information<br>Trademark Policy<br>Terms of Use<br>Harvard Business Publishing:<br>Higher Education<br>Corporate Learning<br>Harvard Business Review<br>Harvard Business School
Copyright ©2026 Harvard Business School Publishing. All rights reserved. Harvard Business Publishing is an affiliate of Harvard Business School.