IITs to see high-paying recruitment battle
High-frequency trading (HFT) firm Quantbox Research is likely to offer a compensation of ₹1.2-1.4 crore, competing with rivals such as Graviton Research Capital, NK Securities, and Quadeye, which could offer ₹80-95 lakh, according to Mint’s review of more than 300 job descriptions and expected salaries that have come to the IITs.
Quant trading firm Da Vinci Trading is also expected to counter them with an offer of 252 thousand euros (about ₹2.6 crore) at Delhi, Bombay, Madras and Kharagpur campuses, a person aware of placement details told Mint on the condition of anonymity.
Investment management firm Squarepoint Capital and investment and tech firm D.E. Shaw will also scout for similar talent, Mint has learnt, and they could offer a compensation of about ₹66 lakh and around ₹74 lakh, respectively. Some of the HFTs are also hiring for global offices, and the compensation typically includes bonuses paid over a few years.
Placements at IIT are a barometer of how campus recruitments in India will shape up over the next few months. As business schools typically start in February-March, engineering colleges reflect India Inc.’s appetite. Of the 23 IITs, the newer ones started their placements in September. Typically, these can last until April. Some of these companies also scooped talent early by making pre-placement offers (PPOs) after their summer internships.
Over the last couple of years , IITs have attracted newer AI companies. That came after the post-pandemic hiring frenzy eased because of global uncertainty. However, last year the campus recruitment saw an uptick, much to the relief of the IITs.
HFTs and quant firms, which hire candidates who can analyze markets using mathematical and statistical models, have been among the top-paying hirers at the IIT campuses over the past few years, irrespective of the global economic conditions. Quant researcher profiles include roles of core engineers and those well-versed in AI, with a basic background in finance.
These companies scout for candidates across the older IITs–Bombay, Delhi, Kanpur, Kharagpur, Madras, Guwahati and Roorkee. The compensation may vary by role, and in many cases, a firm may visit the IIT campus with multiple roles available.
“We will hire 6-10 from the IIT- Bombay, Kanpur, Madras, Delhi and will offer competitive salaries to bag the top talent,” said a senior executive from one of the HFTs mentioned earlier.
IIT Madras, Delhi, Kharagpur, Kanpur, Guwahati and Roorkee did not respond to Mint’s emailed queries. IIT Bombay declined to comment.
US-based Internet of Things (IoT) company, Samsara Inc, with positions in India and London (UK), can offer a compensation of ₹45.5 lakh to ₹1.2 crore (109,580 pounds), according to Mint’s review of job profiles.
Palo Alto-headquartered healthcare firm Risa Labs is looking to recruit for system engineer and associate product manager roles for its offices in India and the US.
Founded by IIT Kanpur alumni Kshitij Jaggi and Kumar Shivang, the healthcare startup’s compensation to the 2026 batch IIT students could range between ₹36 lakh in India and $150,000, with an additional $30,000 worth of stocks in the US, taking the total to about ₹1.6 crore.
Also Read: Candidates using AI? Not on IIT campuses as placement season gets stricter
US-based Abacus AI, which aims to recruit from IIT Bombay, Delhi, Madras and Kanpur, told Mint in an emailed response that it “is looking for candidates who can actually use AI to their advantage to be a lot more effective in their roles”. The compensation offered will be ₹60 lakh for machine learning engineers and software engineers.
Consulting and IT firm Accenture has vacancies in India and Japan, while electric car maker Tesla Inc will recruit core engineers for its Pune, Bengaluru and Guwahati offices. Microsoft, Nvidia and Apple will also grab the early slots with compensation for India-based roles ranging between ₹18.5 lakh and ₹43.5 lakh. Accenture Japan is offering a compensation of 8,186,180 Japanese yen (about ₹47 lakh). Tesla, meanwhile, is offering around ₹33 lakh.
Consumer goods maker Hindustan Unilever Ltd is looking to hire for Unilever’s future leadership program, offering around ₹35 lakh to candidates who can create and optimise AI-led forecasting tools.
Glean Search Technologies, an AI platform founded by IIT Delhi alumni and headquartered in Palo Alto, is also seeking software engineers to be placed in Bangalore and Palo Alto, offering compensation of $150,000 for US-based roles, which translates roughly to ₹1.34 crore in Indian currency.
Boeing and Airbus, too, will battle for the top engineering talent. Airbus, in response to Mint’s queries, said the plane manufacturer conducts campus placements on 1 December across IIT Bombay, Kanpur, Madras, and Kharagpur. “Airbus has been consistently recruiting fresh graduates from IITs every year for diverse roles across Structural Analysis, Flight Physics, Simulations and Advanced System Studies,” the company said. There has been no change in median salaries and bonuses this year, with compensation levels remaining broadly consistent with prior cycles, it said.
Boeing will also visit the IIT campuses to recruit students with offers of around ₹18 lakh, Mint has learnt from placement cell executives, who didn’t want to be identified as the details are not public.
Quantbox Research, Graviton Research Capital, Da Vinci Trading, NK Securities, Quadeye, DE Shaw, Squarepoint Capital, Risa Labs, Tesla, Apple, Microsoft, Hindustan Unilever Ltd., Boeing, Glean Search, Accenture and Samsara Inc. did not respond to Mint’s queries. Databricks and Nvidia declined to comment.
Over the years, startups have gone head-to-head with established manufacturing firms and HFTs to hire from IITs.
IPO bound multi-category online retailer Meesho has multiple roles from software development engineer to senior associate to fill, and the compensation can range between ₹37 to ₹60 lakh per annum. “A majority of our hires are technology folks. About 57% of our entire headcount is tech and product. So our focus would be just to get the best talent there within technology,” co-founder and chief executive officer Vidit Aatrey told Mint in an interview.
Eternal Ltd, formerly Zomato will hire for software developer profiles, with a cost-to-company (CTC) of around ₹47-56 lakh.
Online retail giant Flipkart is expected to offer around ₹26 lakh. “This year, we are engaging with leading IITs and other premier institutes on Day 1, focusing on software engineering roles and a unique position–Associate Product Manager (APM) designed to help students build a career in product management through a rigorous, hands-on learning experience,” said the company in an emailed response.
(Sneha Shah contributed to the story)
Also read: Campus Placements 2026: Why India’s top talent faces a tough hiring season