Good morning, welcome to the 2026 Annual Meeting of Stockholders of ExlService Holdings, Inc. I'm Rohit Kapoor, Chairman and CEO. Thank you for joining us. In accordance with the bylaws of the company, I now call the meeting to order. Joining me today are my fellow directors, Vikram Pandit, Thomas Bartlett, Andreas Fibig, Patrick Geraghty, Kristy Pipes, and Sarah Williamson. Also joining via webcast are our auditors from Deloitte, external counsel from Troutman Pepper, and the members of our executive committee. On behalf of the board and all of EXL, I would like to thank Nitin Sahney, who is not standing for re-election. Nitin has served since 2016, we thank him for his leadership and contributions to EXL. With that, I'll take a few moments to reflect on our performance in 2025 and early 2026, and our outlook.
We enter 2026 with strong momentum and a leading position as a strategic partner for enabling AI in the enterprise. Our focus is clear: bringing together data, context, and AI to transform operations, deliver measurable outcomes, and create long-term value for our clients and stockholders. That strategy delivered strong results in 2025. Revenue grew 14% to $2.09 billion, and adjusted EPS increased 18% to $1.95. Data and AI-led services now represent the majority of our revenue, with more than 75% recurring, providing visibility and resilience as we scale. We have carried this momentum into 2026. In the first quarter, revenue grew 14%, and adjusted EPS increased 20% year-over-year, driven by scaled AI adoption and continued investment in data modernization. At the core of this performance is our ability to make AI real across the enterprise.
We help clients reimagine how work gets done by embedding intelligence, improving precision, and driving results at scale. What differentiates EXL is our ability to turn strategy into execution and measurable results for our clients. Earlier this year, we brought this to life at our flagship AI in Action 2026 event, showcasing the tangible impact we are delivering through AI. We continue to invest in intellectual property that extends our competitive advantage. Since 2025, we have secured 13 new patents for our AI solutions that help our clients automate complex tasks, improve precision, and accelerate decision-making. Our partnerships further accelerate this growth. We are deepening relationships with NVIDIA, Genesys, AWS, Databricks, Microsoft, and Google, expanding co-innovation and go-to-market initiatives. These partnerships strengthen our pipeline and enable differentiated solutions.
We are particularly proud of our recent recognitions from NVIDIA as Advanced Technology Partner of the Year, Genesys as Best New Partner of the Year, and AWS as AI and Machine Learning Market Disruptor of the Year. At the heart of all of our progress is our talent. With more than 67,000 colleagues globally, we are building an AI-native workforce and expanding capabilities in data, AI, and cloud technologies. Our Idea Tank program continues to scale, accelerating innovation and speed to market. Equally important, we aim to grow in a way that is responsible and sustainable. Tens of thousands of our employees support CSR initiatives focused on skills development and education. Our continued focus on ethics, compliance, data privacy, security, and responsible AI strengthens trust and further differentiates EXL. Looking ahead, we remain confident in our outlook.
Enterprises are moving from AI experimentation to scaled deployment. We are well-positioned to lead that transition. Our pipeline is strong, renewal rates remain high, and our business continues to shift towards higher-value AI-led engagements. This positions us as the strategic partner of choice for clients seeking to enable AI across the enterprise. We are encouraged by our performance in 2025 and our strong start to 2026. Our combination of data, context, and AI continues to expand our competitive advantage and growth opportunity. On behalf of the board and management team, thank you to our employees, clients, partners, and especially to our stockholders for your continued support and confidence in EXL. I will now ask Ajay Ayyappan, our General Counsel and Corporate Secretary, to review the rules of conduct and agenda for today's meeting.
Thank you, Rohit, and thank you to our stockholders for joining us. To ensure a fair and efficient meeting, we ask for your cooperation in following the rules of conduct, which are available on the web platform. We will begin with the formal portion of the meeting. You may submit questions during the meeting, which we will address in accordance with the agenda. I will conduct the Q&A session. Only validated stockholders or their proxies may submit questions. Thank you for your cooperation. I will now proceed to the formalities of today's meeting. Today's meeting is being held pursuant to a printed notice mailed or sent via the Internet on or about April 27th, 2026 to each stockholder of record on April 23rd, 2026 who is entitled to vote. A list of stockholders entitled to vote has been available for the past 10 days at our corporate headquarters.
Stockholders were provided access to our proxy statement and annual report via the Internet or by request. All documents relating to this meeting will be filed with the company's record. The company has appointed Tracy Oates as Inspector of Election. Based on the inspector's report, a quorum is present. The meeting may proceed. I will now turn the meeting back over to Rohit to introduce the proposals that we will be voting on today.
Thank you, Ajay. We have three proposals, each described in the proxy statement. I will briefly summarize them. Proposal 1 is the election of seven directors, Vikram Pandit, Thomas Bartlett, Andreas Fibig, Patrick Geraghty, Kristy Pipes, Sarah Williamson, and myself. Each will serve a one-year term. Proposal 2 is the ratification of Deloitte as our independent registered public accounting firm for the fiscal year ending December 31st, 2026. Proposal 3 is the advisory approval of the executive compensation of the company's named executive officers. Ajay, can you please conduct the voting?
Thank you, Rohit. The polls are now open. Stockholders who have not yet voted or who wish to change their vote may do so via the web portal. If you have already voted, no further action is required. We will now pause briefly to allow voting. Voting is now closed, and we will proceed to Q&A. We will address as many questions as time permits in line with the rules of conduct. Please include your name and affiliation when submitting questions. We have received no questions. If at any time you have a question about EXL that you wish to have answered, please contact Andrew Thut, Head of Investor Relations, by email at ir@exlservice.com.
Thank you, Ajay. Can you now please report the preliminary results of the voting?
The holders of a majority of shares present have voted in favor of all proposals, including the election of directors, ratification of Deloitte, and approval of executive compensation.
Based on these preliminary results, each proposal has been approved subject to final certification. Final results will be reported in a Form 8-K within four business days. There being no further business, the meeting is concluded. Thank you to all stockholders who joined us today or submitted proxies. The meeting is adjourned. You may now disconnect.
That concludes our meeting today. You may now disconnect.