EXL and Reply Partner to Scale AI Through Cloud Alliances
Two enterprise services firms announced strategic cloud partnerships on Thursday, and the move highlights the intensifying competition among IT consultancies. As demand for AI-powered transformation rises, companies are racing to secure alliances with major cloud providers. Consequently, these collaborations aim to expand capabilities and deliver scalable solutions across industries.
EXL, a New York-based data and AI company, announced a strategic services collaboration with Google Cloud to scale enterprise AI and deepen cloud modernization. Specifically, the initiative targets sectors such as financial services, healthcare and life sciences, utilities, and retail. In addition, the company plans to expand its cloud practice by strengthening sales capabilities and entering new geographic markets.
Moreover, EXL employs more than 800 AI specialists trained in advanced cloud technologies, which strengthens its delivery capacity. The company also intends to use proprietary frameworks and accelerators to transform customer interactions and business processes. For example, it recently deployed an AI-driven solution for a Fortune 500 healthcare client that automates benefit management workflows handling millions of claims.
“This partnership allows us to enhance innovation at a quicker pace, strengthen our Google Cloud capabilities, and provide tangible business results for our clients globally,” said Vishal Chhibbar, executive vice president and chief growth officer at EXL. Erez Wohl, managing director of system integration partnerships at Google Cloud, cited EXL’s “profound domain knowledge” combined with “robust execution in data, analytics, AI, and cloud transformation”.
Expanding AI Adoption Through Strategic Collaboration
Meanwhile, Reply signed a strategic collaboration agreement with Amazon Web Services to accelerate the adoption of cloud and AI solutions across international markets. Notably, the agreement spans generative AI, including agentic AI systems and domain-specific models. It also covers cloud migration, cybersecurity, data analytics, digital sovereignty, managed services, and IoT.
Furthermore, Reply’s specialized units—including Comsysto Reply, Data Reply, Sense Reply, and Storm Reply—will leverage AWS services to help enterprises transition from experimentation to large-scale AI deployment. At the same time, the agreement addresses regulatory compliance with frameworks such as the EU AI Act, DORA, and NIS2. Additionally, it supports data residency requirements through the AWS European Sovereign Cloud.
“This strategic collaboration agreement with AWS represents an important step forward in scaling generative AI and cloud innovation across industries and geographies,” said Filippo Rizzante, CTO of Reply.
A Growing Industry Trend
Overall, these announcements reflect a broader industry pattern as enterprise service firms increasingly align with hyperscale cloud providers. Earlier this year, NTT DATA signed a multi-year agreement with AWS, and other firms have followed suit. Similarly, companies like PwC and EPAM have expanded their own alliances in recent months.
As a result, the trend underscores a growing corporate preference for integrated AI and cloud solutions. By combining advanced infrastructure with domain expertise, these partnerships enable organizations to accelerate innovation while addressing complex operational and regulatory demands.
