Southwest’s GIC at Hyderabad is Extension of Global Workforce

When Southwest Airlines announced the opening of its Global Innovation Center in Hyderabad, it was not just another multinational setting up operations in India. For the airline, known globally for its people-first culture and customer loyalty, the Hyderabad office represents a deeper strategic shift towards building long-term technology and innovation capabilities outside the United States.

Leading this ambitious expansion is Krishna Kallepalli, Vice President and Global Head of Innovation, India, who believes Hyderabad offers far more than access to engineering talent.

“At the heart of everything that we have been looking at is the broader ecosystem,” says Kallepalli. “Not just infrastructure, not just what the government has extended for the aerospace industry, but talent is at the core of everything we have been focusing on.”

For Southwest Airlines, this is a significant milestone. While the company has worked with global partners for years, this is among its first major international operations where it is directly building and owning capabilities.

“What’s unique about Hyderabad is you get talent that not only has depth, but also broader breadth across business capabilities and technology capabilities. We feel that’s a unique strength this city offers as we move Southwest forward for the long run.”

The decision to choose Hyderabad was influenced by multiple factors. Beyond the city’s rapidly growing aerospace and technology ecosystem, Kallepalli points to Telangana government’s industry-friendly approach, educational institutions, and startup ecosystem as critical advantages.

“When you put all those ingredients together, that’s what stood out for us,” he explains. “Hyderabad is also seeing strong growth in core aerospace engineering capabilities, and now aviation companies and carriers are also beginning to build from here.”

The Hyderabad office currently spans about 20,000 square feet and can accommodate nearly 200 employees in its first phase. Hiring is already underway across cloud engineering, platform engineering, software development, AI, machine learning, and data science.

“We are starting with engineering, software development, software engineering, and then expanding into data science and AI and ML areas,” says Kallepalli, adding, “Along with that, we are also building business capabilities.”

Artificial intelligence, he says, is central to Southwest’s future strategy. But rather than treating AI as a standalone initiative, the airline is embedding it into every layer of operations.

“AI and machine learning have always been part of Southwest’s DNA. Southwest was one of the first airlines to introduce automated ticketing systems back in the 1970s and among the first to embrace e-commerce in the 1990s.”

Now, the focus is on what he calls “AI-fying” technology and customer experiences. “How can we ship better software with better quality? How can we embed AI into every part of the technology ecosystem?” he asks. “Consumers today are already interacting differently. They are not just searching for flights traditionally anymore. They are using GPT technologies to ask for entire travel experiences and recommendations.”

According to him, airlines must now prepare for a future where customer interaction becomes increasingly conversational, predictive, and digitally integrated.

“What’s happening now is that consumers are taking us into the GPT and eventually the agentic AI space,” he says. “For us, it’s important to start building experiences around how consumers are evolving.”

But Southwest’s India strategy is not purely about technological efficiency or cost optimisation. Kallepalli repeatedly returns to one theme throughout the conversation: culture.

For him, the Hyderabad office is not a separate satellite center but an extension of Southwest’s global workforce.

“The Hyderabad office is going to operate as one global team with the headquarters office. We cannot look at this in silos,” he says.

That collaboration will involve both technical and functional integration. Teams in India will work closely with global counterparts across engineering and airline operations while learning the nuances of the aviation business.

“The collaboration has to happen at every phase of everything we do. This is a core extension of our global teams,” he adds.

India, he believes, plays a critical role in Southwest’s larger innovation roadmap because of its ability to continuously improve and evolve systems at scale.

“Innovation should be embedded into every single process and every single product,” he explains. “You cannot create innovation in isolation. It has to happen continuously within the process itself.”

He points to the airline’s focus on DevOps, cloud engineering, and AI integration as examples of how incremental improvements can significantly impact operations globally.

“If we can ship software better and reduce the time it takes to move products across the ecosystem, those are continuous innovations that matter,” he says.

Beyond internal operations, Kallepalli sees AI reshaping the broader aviation experience itself. He speaks about the industry’s growing focus on “frictionless travel,” where digital technologies simplify the journey from airport entry to in-flight experiences.

“We are moving towards completely connected travel experiences,” he says. “Consumers will increasingly interact with airline apps and digital systems throughout their journey.”

Southwest’s expansion into Hyderabad also comes at a time when India is emerging as a major global hub for aviation technology, aerospace engineering, and digital innovation. Telangana’s government has actively positioned Hyderabad as a destination for global capability centers and aerospace investments.

Still, for Kallepalli, success in India will ultimately not be measured only by technology milestones or hiring numbers.

“My single biggest objective is to make sure this Hyderabad office embodies and amplifies the heart of Southwest,” he says.

He pauses before adding what appears to be the core philosophy behind the company’s India journey. “We are a very people-centric company, and we operate with heart,” he says. “As we scale, we cannot afford to lose the Southwest heart. My goal is to make sure that culture resonates here for years to come.”