Infosys accuses Cognizant of poaching key talent to sabotage Helix platform

Infosys has named two top Cognizant executives in a US court filing, alleging poaching of staff tied to its Helix platform and reigniting a long-running legal dispute over trade secrets

Just as it seemed the legal stand-off between Infosys Ltd and Cognizant Technology Solutions was easing, tensions have flared again. Infosys has now named two senior Cognizant executives—Chief People Officer Kathryn Diaz and Surya Gummadi, president of Cognizant’s Americas division—as being allegedly involved in poaching its key personnel, according to a report by Mint.

 

Infosys claims this has hampered the development of its healthcare platform, Helix.

 

Fresh allegations follow earlier claims against CEO

 

The latest escalation follows Infosys’ January 9 court filing, in which it first accused Cognizant CEO Ravi Kumar S, formerly a senior Infosys executive, of deliberately stalling Helix’s rollout while negotiating his move to lead the Nasdaq-listed firm. Kumar had been instrumental in the Helix project during his time at Infosys, which he left in October 2022. He assumed his new role at Cognizant in January 2023.

 

Poaching tied to strategic sabotage, says Infosys

 

In a joint report submitted to a Dallas court on June 13, Infosys said that its former president, Ravi Kumar S, had appointed Kathryn Diaz as chief people officer after becoming Cognizant’s CEO in 2023. Infosys claimed that while Diaz held this role, Cognizant targeted its Helix platform by planning with and hiring key Infosys executives involved in its development—Shveta Arora between October and December 2023, and Ravi Kuchibhotla in 2024.

 

Arora, now Cognizant’s consulting head, and Kuchibhotla, currently chief strategy officer, both previously worked on the Helix platform at Infosys. Arora joined Cognizant in December 2023, and Kuchibhotla followed in August 2024. Infosys Helix is positioned as a rival to Cognizant’s TriZetto platform.

 

Cognizant dismisses accusations

 

Cognizant promptly dismissed Infosys' poaching allegations, stating that Diaz was appointed well after Kumar had joined the company. Responding to Mint, Cognizant said that Infosys’ continued attempts to mislead did not change the fact that it had been caught red-handed stealing Cognizant’s intellectual property.

 

Long-running legal battle over trade secrets

 

The dispute dates back to August last year, when Cognizant first accused Infosys of misappropriating trade secrets related to its healthcare software. Infosys denied the allegations and filed counterclaims, arguing that Cognizant had failed to adequately specify the information allegedly stolen.

 

In its June 13 filing, Infosys maintained that both Gummadi and Diaz possess documents that are relevant to the ongoing case, reinforcing its claims of targeted interference in the Helix project.