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India EOR for AI Companies (2026)

Your AI company needs ML engineers, data scientists and research talent, and India's hubs in Bengaluru, Hyderabad and Pune hold deep pools of both. Skip the six-month subsidiary route: we employ your AI hires on our Bengaluru entity in five business days, with model IP and training-data confidentiality locked into the contracts and every statutory filing handled monthly.

India's AI talent pools are deep and the subsidiary route is slow. We employ your ML engineers and researchers on our entity within five business days, IP terms included.

Speak to sales EOR vs entity, in detail

G2 4.8 / 5 on G2, from companies employing teams in India through us.

Teams building in India. First hire to full team.

Standing up an AI team: subsidiary versus EOR.

Six differences decide how an AI company should employ in India. Each is listed here.

Incorporate to employ AI talent

Employ AI talent through us

First ML engineer on payroll
Half a year away, behind incorporation and registrations.
Working day five after the offer is signed.
Groundwork required
Incorporation, PAN, TAN, PF and ESI codes, a local bank, payroll software.
One agreement and a role brief.
Monthly statutory returns
PF, ESIC, professional tax and TDS deadlines become your team's problem.
Filed under our registration, receipts forwarded.
Cost of a filing slip
12% annual interest on overdue PF plus damages reaching 25%, in your name.
The exposure stops at our MSA.
Per-head monthly spend
Setup costs in the thousands, then accountants and tooling forever.
$149 per hire, $129 beyond twenty.
Winding down
Formal dissolution stretching across months of regulatory steps.
A thirty-day notice, nothing owed.

Incorporate to employ AI talent
First ML engineer on payroll Half a year away, behind incorporation and registrations.
Groundwork required Incorporation, PAN, TAN, PF and ESI codes, a local bank, payroll software.
Monthly statutory returns PF, ESIC, professional tax and TDS deadlines become your team's problem.
Cost of a filing slip 12% annual interest on overdue PF plus damages reaching 25%, in your name.
Per-head monthly spend Setup costs in the thousands, then accountants and tooling forever.
Winding down Formal dissolution stretching across months of regulatory steps.

Employ AI talent through us
First ML engineer on payroll Working day five after the offer is signed.
Groundwork required One agreement and a role brief.
Monthly statutory returns Filed under our registration, receipts forwarded.
Cost of a filing slip The exposure stops at our MSA.
Per-head monthly spend $149 per hire, $129 beyond twenty.
Winding down A thirty-day notice, nothing owed.
Month 1
Director credentials and name reservation
Month 2
MCA clears the incorporation
Month 3
PAN, TAN and GSTIN allotted
Month 4
PF and ESI codes assigned
Month 5
Banking live, payroll platform running
Month 6
Recruiting can finally open

Overdue statutory dues grow on their own.

From the missed 15th onward, 12% annual interest accrues on the unpaid PF amount and damages can add up to 25% more.

On our registration, the obligation and any recovery notice belong to us, keeping your AI company's name off the correspondence.

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The bill from one skipped PF filing Daily accrual of interest and damages
₹6,200 Day 1
₹41,500 Day 30
₹1,84,000 Day 90
₹3,12,000 Day 180
Figures reflect a small payroll and one missed challan. Higher salaries and longer delays inflate them.
Where enforcement lands
On your Indian subsidiary You
On Versatile's entity Versatile

At sufficient research headcount an entity pays for itself. The closing FAQ names the number. Test your headcount plan in the EOR versus entity calculator for a side-by-side total.

Your models, your data, your roadmap. Our payroll.

Research direction, model decisions and data access stay with you. Employment, salaries and statutory returns run on our Bengaluru registration with monthly proof.

You run

  • Research agenda and model decisions
  • Access controls on data and infrastructure
  • Compensation and equity conversations

We handle

  • Contracts with IP and confidentiality terms
  • Salary processing and itemised payslips
  • Monthly PF, ESIC, professional tax, TDS
  • Benefits, exits and final dues

You run
  • Direct the research and the stack
  • Govern data and model access
  • Own pay and equity calls
  • Run the team as you see fit

We handle
  • Contract each hire from our entity
  • Pay salaries monthly with slips
  • File statutory returns with evidence
  • Hold the India HR records
  • Administer benefits and exits
  • Take the payroll questions

When something happens in India, it is ours.
A regulator's letter shows up We deal with it
A salary line is wrong We put it right
Rules change mid-year We decode it for you

A named compliance manager owns your account. Not a queue, not a chatbot, one person who already knows your headcount and your last filing.

Account managerMedian first reply 4 to 6 hours
Recruitment coordinatorBrief to shortlist 9 days
Finance associateFilings on time 8 / 8

AI talent screened beyond the resume.

ML engineers and data scientists get vetted for communication, hours that overlap yours, and evidence of shipped work, not just paper credentials. Nine days to a shortlist.

Your models stay yours in writing.

IP assignment covering work product, inventions and derivatives sits in both the employment contract and our MSA, alongside confidentiality terms reaching training data and weights.

Researchers never chase payroll admin.

Form 16, PF balance and leave questions come to our desk, so your standups stay about experiments and eval runs.

Continuity survives a future entity.

Incorporate later and every researcher's UAN, tenure and gratuity accrual transfer over whole.

AI talent screened beyond the resume.

ML engineers and data scientists get vetted for communication, hours that overlap yours, and evidence of shipped work, not just paper credentials. Nine days to a shortlist.

Generic EORs do not know an ML role from a web role.

Your models stay yours in writing.

IP assignment covering work product, inventions and derivatives sits in both the employment contract and our MSA, alongside confidentiality terms reaching training data and weights.

No IP dispute has arisen on our contracts.

Researchers never chase payroll admin.

Form 16, PF balance and leave questions come to our desk, so your standups stay about experiments and eval runs.

Their attention belongs on the models.

Moving someone across

Shift India-based AI staff onto us in one cycle.

Researchers already engaged in India as contractors or under another employer can move to our registration with tenure, PF history and start dates carried across, and no missed salary.

Tenure Kept
Gratuity clock Kept
PF and UAN Continuous
Payroll gap 0 days

A 200-person migration completed inside one payroll cycle proves the process.

Supporting evidence

Confirm the employing entity yourself.

AI hires are employed by Foo Falcon Technologies Pvt Ltd, Bengaluru, on the register since 2022.

  • Incorporation
  • GST
  • EPFO code
  • ESIC
  • Shops and Establishments
  • PAN and TAN
  • Udyam MSME
What we verify
  • Incorporation Ministry of Corporate Affairs
  • GST Goods and Services Tax
  • EPFO code Employees Provident Fund Organisation
  • ESIC Ministry of Labour and Employment
  • Shops and Establishments Government of Karnataka
  • PAN and TAN Income Tax Department
  • Udyam MSME Government of India

The certificate PDF goes out on request, and no salesperson follows it.

200

employees moved onto our registration in one cycle, every UAN intact

33

invoices over 26 months to a single client, each on time and undisputed

5 days

from accepted offer to a researcher salaried and working

G2 4.8 / 5 on G2, from companies employing teams in India through us.

G2 4.8 / 5 on G2, from companies employing through us.

AI and ML teams on hiring India talent this way.

Companies building models with India-based researchers on our entity describe how it went.

Video
Bharath Rasoi KS Rajeshwari Founder, Bharath Rasoi
Video
Open Theatre Anand Raj Founder, Open Theatre
Abid Hassan Verified client
Sensibull
“They moved fast and took the whole compliance side off my plate. For a founder making an early India hire, that is exactly what you want.”
Abid Hassan Founder and CEO, Sensibull
Via G2
Moonshot
“Every option was either 'set up your own entity' or a platform that quotes a great price then hits you with add-ons. Versatile was the one that actually made it simple. First payroll ran on time. No scramble.”
Angad S. Co-Founder, Moonshot
Via G2
Digital Marketing Agency
“Contracts, PF, ESI, TDS and payroll all in one place. Invoicing in USD meant zero exchange rate surprises. The compliance rigour is genuinely reassuring.”
Vedant T. Founder, Digital Marketing Agency
Via G2
Design Studio
“Setting up in a new country can get messy fast, but their India EOR made onboarding feel easy. The team is responsive, clear, and great to work with.”
Setu C. Studio Owner, Design Studio
Via G2
US Startup
“We used Versatile to hire our first employee in India after months of putting it off because the compliance side seemed like a mess. They walked us through it and now we don't think about it.”
Verified US Founder First-time Founder, US Startup
Via G2
Mid-Market Tech Co.
“Versatile consistently delivered work that was both strategically sharp and execution-ready. Their turnaround times are impressive, and they think about problems the way an in-house team would.”
Shivani K. Senior Manager, Tech TA
Via G2
Growth-stage Startup
“Their team was highly responsive, professional, and easy to work with. They made a complex process feel simple.”
Mukul S. Core Team, Growth-stage Startup

Case studies.

Largest food delivery app in India, decacorn View case study The world's largest professional network, part of Microsoft View case study Legacy US software company, publishing platforms View case study

Flat pricing for research and engineering heads.

Each hire carries one monthly fee covering employment, statutory work and support. Sourcing AI talent is a separate add-on. No setup cost, no exit cost.

Employer of Record

No subsidiary to open
$149 /employee/mo

Beyond twenty heads the whole team bills at $129. Monthly, in your currency, cancellable anytime.

Start hiring
  • Full-time employment via our Bengaluru entity
  • Monthly PF, ESIC, professional tax and TDS
  • Your currency, one consolidated invoice
  • Salaried and working by day five
  • A compliance manager you can name
  • A payroll lead for your account
  • Payslips and portal for every hire
  • Move to your own entity later, intact
  • Full-time employment via our Bengaluru entity
  • Monthly PF, ESIC, professional tax and TDS
  • Your currency, one consolidated invoice
  • Salaried and working by day five
Plus four more features
  • A compliance manager you can name
  • A payroll lead for your account
  • Payslips and portal for every hire
  • Move to your own entity later, intact

Scaling a research pod past twenty, or migrating one? Sales can help.

Recruitment

We source AI and ML talent
12% of annual CTC

For junior and mid-level searches. Senior ML roles at 15%, leadership scoped case by case. Referrals cost nothing.

Send us a role
  • ML-literate shortlist within nine days
  • Compensation data by level and hub
  • We run the interview logistics
  • Billing lands on day ninety
  • Senior AI roles at 15% of CTC
  • Leadership searches priced by scope
  • Your referred candidates stay free
  • Onboarding to our entity or yours
  • ML-literate shortlist within nine days
  • Compensation data by level and hub
  • We run the interview logistics
  • Billing lands on day ninety
Plus four more details
  • Senior AI roles at 15% of CTC
  • Leadership searches priced by scope
  • Your referred candidates stay free
  • Onboarding to our entity or yours

Staffing senior researchers or a full pod? Scope it with sales.

At the twenty-first head

$149 $129 /employee/mo

All heads reprice together to $129, with no renegotiation and nothing to commit to.

Covered by the monthly fee

  • Employment contract with IP assignment terms
  • Salary run each month with itemised slips
  • PF, ESIC, professional tax and TDS returns
  • Gratuity accrual from the very first day
  • Partner-provided group health insurance
  • One USD invoice at the RBI reference rate
  • Background checks, onboarding and Form 16
  • Exit steps and final settlement

Hire twenty-one and the rate falls

$149 $129 /employee/mo

Each seat moves to $129 automatically, on the same entity, with no fresh contract.

Covered by your fee

  • Employment contract with IP assignment terms
  • Salary run each month with itemised slips
  • PF, ESIC, professional tax and TDS returns
  • Gratuity accrual from the very first day
  • Partner-provided group health insurance
  • One USD invoice at the RBI reference rate
  • Background checks, onboarding and Form 16
  • Exit steps and final settlement

AI talent sourcing bills at 12% of annual CTC on the ninetieth day for junior and mid-senior roles. Salaries and employer statutory costs pass through unmarked-up. Devices, desks and added insurance bill via partners per use. Compare both structures in the EOR versus entity calculator with your figures.

What AI companies ask before hiring in India.

Eight questions AI and ML teams put to us, answered as on a sales call. The eighth explains when to walk away from us.

How can an AI company hire ML engineers in India without an entity?

Through an EOR. We employ your ML engineers and researchers on Foo Falcon Technologies Pvt Ltd in Bengaluru under a service agreement with your company. They work solely on your models while we carry payroll, filings and employment law. First hire live in five business days.

Where is India's AI and ML talent concentrated?

Bengaluru leads for research depth and startup experience, Hyderabad for enterprise ML and platform work, Pune and Chennai for engineering-heavy profiles. We source across all four hubs and benchmark pay by city and level before you make an offer.

Who owns the models and code our India team builds?

Your company does. Assignment language in both the employment contract and our master service agreement covers work product, inventions, improvements and derivatives, with confidentiality obligations extending to training data, weights and evaluation results.

How is training-data confidentiality handled with EOR employees?

Contractually and operationally. Confidentiality clauses bind each employee directly, you keep full control of access provisioning to data and infrastructure, and nothing about the EOR structure requires us to touch your systems or datasets at any point.

What does an ML engineer cost through an EOR in India?

$149 per month per head for employment, compliance and support, falling to $129 past twenty. The engineer's salary plus statutory employer costs, PF 12%, ESI 3.25%, gratuity 4.81%, pass through at cost on one USD invoice at the RBI rate.

How fast can a research pod be up and running?

Sourced shortlists arrive within nine days, screened for ML depth and communication. From each signed offer, five business days: KYC, PF and ESI registration, insurance and devices, onboarding call, then live payroll. A five-person pod can be working inside a month.

Can researchers move to our own entity after a funding round?

Yes. When a raise justifies incorporation, each person transfers with UAN, tenure and gratuity dates preserved and payroll unbroken. Teams of 200 have crossed over in a single cycle this way.

When should an AI company not use an EOR?

With an Indian entity already running payroll, an EOR adds cost without benefit. For engagements under three months, contracting is more economical than employment. And for keeping long-term staff on contractor paperwork, we refuse outright, because misclassification exposure follows.

Longer reading: EOR India 2026 · EOR India playbook · Pay employees in India

Tell us where you are on the decision.

A role you want to hire, a team you want moved, or just the two routes to compare. A named person replies in 4 to 6 hours.

A named person replies in 4 to 6 hours, not an autoresponder.

We use these details to respond to your enquiry.

A named person replies in 4 to 6 hours, not an autoresponder. We use these details to respond to your enquiry.

What the first call covers

30 minutes

A cost comparison for your headcount, on your numbers, both routes.

  • A written cost breakdown
  • Entity documents before the call
  • PF, ESI, TDS, termination law
  • No follow-up sequence
Book a call →

You pick the time, we send a Meet link. Any timezone.

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