Former Infosys CEO Vishal Sikka has launched Hang Ten Systems, an AI-native services startup built to challenge the traditional IT outsourcing model. The Bay Area company is already delivering AI-driven enterprise projects for clients including Siemens Gamesa Renewable Energy and Fresenius. Yahoo co-founder Jerry Yang has joined the company's board as Hang Ten begins hiring across engineering, delivery, and sales.
Hang Ten enters a market where legacy IT services firms built billion-dollar businesses by deploying large engineering teams to integrate and maintain enterprise software. Instead, the startup uses agentic code generation and reusable AI skills to build and operate enterprise systems. This framework allows the company to scale its leverage with every project rather than relying on linear headcount growth. Sikka stated in a blog post that Hang Ten is already helping large enterprises "hang ten on the biggest wave of our lifetimes."
The company launched with a $32 million seed round led by Mayfield, with investment from Aramco Ventures and participation from angel investors. Sikka assembled an early team of executives who worked with him across SAP, Infosys, and his previous AI venture, VianAI. Key co-founders include CTO Navin Budhiraja, Chief Design Officer Sanjay Rajagopalan, and Senior Vice President Tao Liu. Mayfield managing partner Navin Chaddha clarified to TechCrunch that Hang Ten is distinct from VianAI, which focused on analytics.
Hang Ten's launch comes as the IT services industry debates how artificial intelligence will reshape its business model. Analysts at Jefferies recently argued that IT services face immediate AI disruption. Meanwhile, legacy players are adapting through partnerships with companies including Anthropic and OpenAI, with Infosys projecting that "AI-first services" could become a $300 billion to $400 billion market by 2030. Infosys Chairman Nandan Nilekani argued AI will expand the industry's addressable market, while Hang Ten is betting enterprises are ready for an AI-native alternative.
