The technology skills equation is changing faster than India’s traditional higher education system can adapt. As AI increasingly takes over routine coding, analysis and other execution-heavy tasks, the value of simply knowing a programming language or having an engineering degree is being questioned. What is emerging instead is a premium on problem-solving, critical thinking, adaptability and the ability to work effectively with AI. For Vishwa Mohan, Founder & CEO, upGrad School of Technology, this shift is also exposing a longstanding disconnect between what students learn in engineering colleges and what industry expects from them when they enter the workforce. In an exclusive interaction with Express Computer, Mohan discusses why the industry-academia gap is widening, how AI is changing the definition of employability, why technology education needs to evolve faster, and why cybersecurity and quantum computing need to become part of the next generation of engineering education. From “show me the code” to “show me the thinking” Mohan’s assessment of the changing technology workforce starts with a simple shift in what employers value. “When I started coding, I was studying between 2006 and 2011. And then when I joined Oracle, at that time, people used to say that idea is cheap; show me the code,” he says. “Fast forward to today, I think it’s taken a 360-degree shift where we say, ‘Code is cheap; show me the thinking.'” He believes this shift should fundamentally change what universities prioritise. Computer science fundamentals such as databases, operating systems, compilers and how computers work will remain essential, but a significant part of technology education needs to respond to rapidly changing industry requirements. At the same time, he argues that universities need to continuously update the practical component of their curriculum. The industry-academia gap is widening Mohan says the gap between education and industry has