Wipro has one of the more unusual origin stories in tech. Founded in 1945 by Mohamed Premji as Western India Products Limited — a company that made vegetable oils and soaps — it was transformed into an IT services firm by his son Azim Premji after he took over in 1966 at the age of 21.
Today, Wipro is one of India’s top IT services companies, headquartered in Bangalore with over 230,000 employees across 65+ countries. The company reported revenue of approximately $10.8 billion for fiscal year 2024 and trades on both the BSE and NYSE.
Wipro’s technology services cover application development, cloud infrastructure, cybersecurity, data analytics, and enterprise application services for platforms like SAP, Oracle, and Salesforce. Their client base includes many Fortune 500 companies across banking, healthcare, manufacturing, and retail.
Under CEO Thierry Delaporte (appointed in 2020, succeeded by Srini Pallia in 2024), Wipro pursued an aggressive acquisition strategy, buying companies like Capco (financial services consulting, $1.45 billion), Rizing (SAP consulting), and Edgile (cybersecurity). These acquisitions were aimed at moving Wipro upmarket and building domain expertise in specific industries.
Azim Premji, who stepped down as chairman in 2019, is one of India’s most prominent philanthropists. Through the Azim Premji Foundation and personal contributions, he’s donated billions of dollars to education causes, making him one of the most generous philanthropists in Indian history.
Wipro’s challenge has been differentiating itself from larger rivals like TCS and Infosys. The company has focused on strategic consulting engagements and industry-specific solutions to move beyond competing primarily on price and scale.
