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Background
 

The Indian AI & Testing Awards 2026 is a premier platform recognising excellence in software testing, quality engineering, and AI-driven innovation across India’s technology ecosystem. Organised by Navigo, the awards celebrate individuals, teams, and organisations that are transforming the future of software quality through innovation, leadership, and measurable impact.

As AI, automation, and modern engineering practices reshape the software industry, quality engineering has evolved far beyond traditional testing. Today’s quality leaders are driving intelligent automation, scalable testing strategies, continuous quality practices, performance engineering, security validation, and AI-enabled testing initiatives that directly influence business outcomes and customer experience.

The awards honour breakthrough projects, high-performing teams, pioneering leaders, and forward-thinking organisations that are setting new benchmarks in quality engineering and testing excellence. From enterprise-scale transformation initiatives to AI-driven quality innovation, the platform showcases impactful work that is advancing the discipline of software quality in India.

The Indian AI & Testing Awards 2026 brings together the country’s leading testing professionals, quality engineers, technology leaders, enterprises, startups, and training institutions to celebrate achievement, encourage innovation, and inspire the next generation of quality leadership.

Winning an Indian AI & Testing Award is more than recognition — it is a mark of credibility, innovation, and industry leadership. It is an opportunity to showcase your achievements, strengthen your reputation, and stand among India’s most influential voices in testing and quality engineering.

Why join Indian AI & Testing Awards

  • Celebrate Excellence: Recognize and honour the industry’s top performers who are setting new benchmarks in software testing and quality assurance.

  • Gain Industry Recognition: Seize the opportunity to showcase your achievements and gain national visibility among peers, leaders, and potential clients.

  • Network with Influencers: Connect with leading professionals, innovators, and decision-makers in the field of software testing, expanding your professional network.

  • Inspire and Innovate: Be inspired by groundbreaking contributions and innovative practices that are shaping the future of IT software development and support.

  • Elevate Your Professional Profile: Enhance your professional stature by aligning with the industry’s best and brightest and position yourself as a leader in the field.

  • Celebrate Achievements: Enjoy a prestigious event that highlights and celebrates the hard work and dedication of exceptional teams and individuals in the software testing community.

 INDIVIDUAL CATEGORY

TESTING LEADER OF THE YEAR

This category recognizes an outstanding leader driving excellence, innovation, and measurable impact in software testing practices.

Jury Criteria:

  • Strategic leadership in QA or quality engineering transformation

  • Measurable improvement in product quality, speed, or efficiency

  • Innovation in testing strategy, tools, or processes

  • Influence on teams, culture, and quality mindset

  • Cross-functional collaboration with engineering and product teams

GRADUATE TESTER OF THE YEAR

This award recognizes an early-career professional demonstrating strong fundamentals and growth in software testing.

Jury Criteria:

  • Strong understanding of testing fundamentals

  • Contribution to real-world testing activities or projects

  • Learning agility and adaptability to tools/automation basics

  • Problem-solving approach and attention to detail

  • Initiative, ownership, and growth mindset

AI AUTOMATION LEADER OF THE YEAR

This category Honors individuals leading the use of AI to build intelligent and scalable automation systems.

Jury Criteria:

  • Use of AI in automation strategy or framework design

  • Reduction in manual effort through intelligent automation

  • Stability and scalability of automation solutions

  • Innovation in self-healing or adaptive automation

  • Business impact through faster delivery cycles

RESPONSIBLE AI & QUALITY LEADER

This award honors efforts ensuring AI systems are tested, validated, and deployed with fairness, safety, and reliability.

Jury Criteria:

  • Implementation of AI testing, validation, or governance practices

  • Bias detection and mitigation strategies

  • Safety, compliance, and risk management in AI systems

  • Responsible deployment practices

  • Contribution to trustworthy AI systems

TESTING MANAGER OF THE YEAR

This award recognizes the manager who has successfully led testing teams to deliver high-quality software consistently and efficiently.

Jury Criteria:

  • Team delivery performance and execution quality

  • Improvement in testing processes and productivity

  • People management, mentoring, and team development

  • Ability to balance delivery timelines with quality outcomes

  • Adoption of modern QA practices and tools

AI QUALITY ENGINEER OF THE YEAR

This category recognizes excellence in applying AI to enhance software quality engineering and testing outcomes.

Jury Criteria:

  • Practical application of AI in QA or engineering workflows

  • Measurable improvements in quality, automation, or efficiency

  • Innovation in AI-assisted testing practices

  • Integration of AI into QA pipelines or systems

  • Real-world adoption and scalability

GenAI IMPLEMENTATION EXCELLENCE AWARD

This award recognizes outstanding real-world implementation of Generative AI in engineering, testing, or quality workflows.

Jury Criteria:

  • Practical GenAI use cases implemented in real environments

  • Measurable productivity or quality improvements

  • Innovation in workflows, prompts, or AI-assisted systems

  • Responsible and effective use of GenAI tools

  • Adoption across teams or functions

TEST ARCHITECT OF THE YEAR

​Honours a professional designing scalable, efficient, and robust test architecture for complex systems.

Jury Criteria:

  • Design of scalable test automation frameworks or systems

  • Architectural decisions improving reliability and maintainability

  • Integration of testing into CI/CD and DevOps pipelines

  • Tooling strategy and framework innovation

  • Long-term impact on quality engineering efficiency

 CORPORATE CATEGORY

TESTING PROJECT OF THE YEAR

This category recognizes a high-impact real-world testing initiative that improved product quality and delivery outcomes.

Jury Criteria:

  • Business impact achieved

  • Complexity handled

  • Innovation in testing approach

  • Improvement in quality metrics

  • Scalability of practices

TEST AUTOMATION PROJECT OF THE YEAR

This award recognizes excellence in designing and implementing effective test automation solutions.

Jury Criteria:

  • Automation coverage

  • Framework design and scalability

  • Reduction in manual effort

  • CI/CD integration

  • Stability and maintainability

MOBILE TESTING PROJECT OF THE YEAR

This category recognizes excellence in testing mobile applications across devices, platforms, and user experiences.

Jury Criteria:

  • Device and platform coverage

  • Mobile automation maturity

  • UX and usability validation

  • Performance and stability testing

  • Release quality improvement

QUALITY ENGINEERING TRANSFORMATION 

This award honors organizations transforming traditional QA into modern quality engineering practices.

Jury Criteria:

  • Shift-left and shift-right adoption

  • Process modernization

  • Integration into engineering lifecycle

  • Automation maturity

  • Measurable quality and speed improvements

PERFORMANCE & RELIABLITY TESTING

This category awards excellence in ensuring application performance, scalability, and system reliability.

Jury Criteria:

  • Performance testing strategy

  • Bottleneck identification and resolution

  • System stability improvements

  • Scalability validation

  • Production reliability and user impact

QA TRAINING & EDUCATION LEADER

Category awards leadership in building QA skills, capability development, and testing talent growth.

Jury Criteria:

  • Impact of training programs

  • Skill development outcomes

  • Reach and adoption of learning initiatives

  • Innovation in training delivery

  • Contribution to QA talent ecosystem

TESTING TEAM OF THE YEAR

This award recognizes a high-performing QA team delivering consistent quality and reliable software releases.

Jury Criteria:

  • Team performance and collaboration

  • Delivery consistency

  • Process maturity

  • Innovation in team practices

  • Impact on release stability

BEST QUALITY PROJECT IN BFSI

This award recognizes strong quality delivery and testing outcomes in banking and financial services systems.

Jury Criteria:

  • Risk and compliance coverage

  • Defect reduction and quality improvement

  • Automation effectiveness

  • System reliability

  • Business and regulatory impact

SECURITY TESTING PROJECT OF THE YEAR 

This award recognizes strong implementation of security testing practices ensuring safe and secure applications.

Jury Criteria:

  • Vulnerability coverage and detection

  • Integration in SDLC lifecycle

  • Tools and techniques used

  • Risk mitigation effectiveness

  • Improvement in application security

AI DRIVEN QUALITY PROJECT OF THE YEAR

Recognizes effective use of AI to improve software quality outcomes and testing processes.

Jury Criteria:

  • Practical AI implementation in QA

  • Measurable quality or efficiency gains

  • Innovation in AI usage

  • Scalability across teams

  • Business impact

AI ENABLED TEST AUTOMATION AWARD

This category recognizes innovation in using AI to enhance automation frameworks and testing systems.

Jury Criteria:

  • AI usage in automation design or execution

  • Reduction in maintenance effort

  • Improvement in automation reliability

  • Integration into pipelines

  • Delivery impact

TESTING EXCELLENCE IN TELECOM

Recognizes outstanding quality engineering practices in telecom domain projects.

Jury Criteria:

  • Domain complexity handled

  • Quality improvements achieved

  • Automation maturity

  • Scalability of testing approach

  • Business impact

Award Submission Guidelines

  • Multiple Submissions: Multiple submissions per category are permitted.

  • Company Submissions: Organizations may submit nominations across multiple categories.

  • Eligibility: Nominations are open to both organizations and individuals, depending on the respective award category.

  • Invitations: The Awards Committee may invite organizations or individuals to submit nominations. Such invitations do not constitute automatic selection or shortlisting.

  • Nomination Submission: All nominees must complete the official nomination form and provide accurate and relevant supporting information for evaluation and verification. The deadline for submission of completed nominations is 31 October 2026.

  • Nomination Fee: A nominal fee is applicable per category to encourage serious and high-quality nominations. Details of the fee structure are provided separately.

  • Evaluation Process: All nominations will be reviewed by an independent jury panel. Based on the evaluation criteria, the jury will shortlist the top nominations in each category and select the final winner.

  • Submission Quality: Entries will be assessed solely on the information and supporting material provided. Participants are encouraged to include detailed case studies, measurable outcomes, screenshots, charts, and relevant evidence wherever applicable.

  • Finalists Notification: Shortlisted nominees will be notified upon completion of the jury evaluation process.

  • Winner Announcement: Winners will be announced at the Indian AI & Testing Awards 2026 ceremony in Bangalore on 26 November 2026.

Judging Panel 2026

Warner Bros

Jamuna Thangavelu
Director of Global QA
Warner Bros. Discovery

Sudeep.jpg

Sudeep Chatterjee
Director Capital Markets Tech
LSEG

Winners of Indian Testing Awards 2025

Test Automation Project
Testing Team
Performance Testing Project
Mobile Testing
Test Manager
QA Consultancy
Testing in Telecom
Testing Project Runnersup
Testing Project
Emerging Tech in Testing
Graduate Tester

REGISTER

PER NOMINATION

₹ 15,000 + GST

REGISTER

Each application will include: 

  • Attendance at the Indian Testing Awards: Access to the prestigious Indian Testing Awards, where excellence in software testing is recognized. This event provides an opportunity to network with industry leaders and celebrate notable achievements.

  • Full-Day Conference Pass: A comprehensive pass for the entire day of the conference, including entry to all keynote sessions, panel discussions, and workshops, allowing for a thorough engagement with the latest developments in software testing.

  • Tea/Coffee: Complimentary tea and coffee will be available throughout the day, ensuring you remain refreshed during the conference.

  • Lunch Buffet: Lunch will be provided, offering a chance to engage with fellow attendees in a more relaxed environment.

Venue:

Radisson Blu Atria
#1 Palace Road,
Bengaluru 560001
Karnataka

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