Second Talent enters India to speed tech hiring across Asia

Second Talent has expanded into India, opening access to pre-vetted engineers in the world's largest developer market and extending its platform to ten Asian markets. The move targets companies that want faster hiring, local compliance handled and broader access to senior technical talent without setting up an entity.

Why it matters: - Second Talent's India launch gives global companies another source of senior engineering talent in a market that produces more professional software engineers each year than any other country. - The expansion matters for employers that want faster access to vetted talent without opening a local entity or managing multiple vendors. - Second Talent says the India move also helps clients consolidate hiring across Asia through one platform.

What happened: - Second Talent announced its expansion into India on Aug. 5, 2026. - The platform now operates in 10 markets: Vietnam, the Philippines, Indonesia, Malaysia, Singapore, Thailand, China, Hong Kong, Taiwan and India. - Clients can hire developers in India in cities including Bengaluru, Hyderabad, Pune, Chennai, Gurugram and Mumbai. - The company says it can match clients with pre-vetted engineers in India within 24 hours.

The details: - Second Talent handles contracts, payroll, taxes and compliance for hires, so clients do not need to set up a local entity. - The company describes its engineers as "AI-Native," meaning they use modern AI-assisted development workflows and tools such as Claude Code and Cursor. - Clients typically save 75% versus hiring the same seniority of engineer domestically in the United States, while keeping four to six hours of daily working overlap. - Second Talent says its screening process accepts roughly 1% of applicants and combines technical assessments with real-world project simulations. - Engineers who pass are matched through automated matching and human review, with clients typically receiving a first shortlist within one business day. - The company has placed engineers with more than 200 companies since it was founded. - Second Talent reports a 92% talent retention rate across placements. - The India talent bench already includes backend engineering, data engineering, DevOps, AI/ML engineering, full-stack development and QA automation roles. - Second Talent's headquarters are in San Francisco, with an office in Singapore.

Between the lines: - The India launch fits a broader shift in global hiring toward English-fluent engineering talent that can work asynchronously with US and European teams. - Second Talent says demand from existing clients pushed the company to add India after scaling across Southeast Asia over the past two years. - The company's pitch is less about being a marketplace and more about owning the operational layer around hiring, which it says reduces friction in cross-border placements. - India's strong applicant pool appears to have accelerated the launch, with Chan saying the market met the company's vetting and compliance bar faster than any market it has opened so far.

What's next: - Second Talent plans to expand its India talent pool through the rest of 2026. - The company is prioritizing AI/ML engineering, agentic AI development and backend roles in fintech and SaaS. - Companies can start the matching process at secondtalent.com. - Second Talent also directs interested users to its LinkedIn page at company profile.

The bottom line: - Second Talent is betting that India can become a core source of vetted senior engineers for global teams, not just another low-cost outsourcing destination.