HCLTech and Zscaler have expanded their partnership to meet the growing enterprise demand for AI-driven security and network transformation. The collaboration integrates HCLTech’s AI Force and AI Foundry with Zscaler’s Zero Trust Exchange, creating a unified framework that blends AI, automation, and zero trust to help organizations modernize securely across hybrid and cloud-first environments.
The partnership reflects a broader shift in how enterprises think about security. Organizations are moving away from traditional, perimeter-based defenses toward identity-driven models built on continuous verification and contextual access. HCLTech and Zscaler’s partnership is meant to accelerate that change - helping enterprises evolve without slowing down operations or disrupting existing workflows, while delivering clearer visibility, stronger control, and a more measurable return on security investments.
AI-Powered Detection and Response at Enterprise Scale
Amit Jain, EVP and Global Head of Cybersecurity at HCLTech, told MSSP Alert that the joint solution brings a new level of intelligence and precision to enterprise security operations.
“By integrating Zscaler’s Zero Trust Exchange with HCLTech’s Cybersecurity Fusion Center (CSFC) platform, we combine Zscaler’s inline inspection and policy enforcement with HCLTech’s AI-led SecOps,” he explained. “AI Force and the CSFC Fusion platform bring automated analytics and human-in-the-loop workflows, so a real-time correlated threat context generates prescriptive, human-reviewed recommendations for dynamic policy configuration or automated remediation.”
This integration strengthens the feedback loop between detection, analysis, and action, which is one of the most critical challenges in modern SecOps.
“The result is context-rich alerts, faster triage, and measurable MTTR improvements powered by AI and automation across HCLTech’s Universal MDR (UMDR),” Jain added. The UMDR framework now integrates directly with Zscaler Internet Access (ZIA) and Zscaler Private Access (ZPA), giving security teams enriched telemetry that combines identity, device, and application context to guide AI-assisted investigations and real-time response.
The approach reflects HCLTech’s broader vision for cyber resilience, where AI-driven analytics and responsible automation work hand in hand with human expertise. It creates a closed-loop system that not only detects threats but also understands their business impact, enabling organizations to respond in seconds instead of hours.
Guiding Hybrid Enterprises Toward Zero Trust
Many enterprises continue to operate in hybrid environments, where cloud workloads coexist with legacy on-prem systems. Jain said the expanded partnership was designed with this reality in mind.
“We start with zero-trust maturity assessments and architecture blueprints, then phase adoption through SASE and identity-first controls that coexist with legacy networks,” he explained. “Zscaler’s cloud-delivered access model reduces dependency on site-centric appliances, while HCLTech’s transformation services guide policy migration, traffic steering, and change management, minimizing risk to users and applications.”
This measured, data-informed approach allows enterprises to modernize without interrupting operations. Continuous monitoring through HCLTech’s UMDR and CSFC ensures that “controls are validated and tuned as workloads move,” Jain said. Beyond security, the integration of AI Foundry’s Responsible AI guardrails creates a secure foundation for enterprise AI applications such as LLMs, Copilot, and other generative tools, ensuring responsible use of AI across environments powered by Zscaler Private Access.
The companies have also co-developed industry-specific use cases to help enterprises address compliance, performance, and security challenges unique to their sectors. “In Energy and Utilities, we’re enabling secure remote access for field engineers and OT systems,” Jain said. “In Retail, we’re protecting store connectivity and payment data. In Healthcare, we’re providing privacy-preserving access to patient applications. And in Manufacturing, we’re securing supplier collaboration and modernizing factory connectivity.” These tailored use cases illustrate how zero trust and AI-driven analytics can align directly with business operations, not just IT goals.
Expanding Managed Services and Co-Developed Solutions
The partnership now extends into co-managed service delivery, where HCLTech brings operational expertise and Zscaler provides the foundational cloud-native platform. “HCLTech delivers co-managed SASE and Zero Trust services powered by Zscaler from our global Cybersecurity Fusion Centers,” Jain explained. “This includes advisory, transformation, and 24x7 managed operations under a single operating model.”
Through this model, customers gain access to joint SASE services that integrate Zscaler’s AI-enabled modules, including SWG, ZTNA, CASB, DLP, and IoT Security, with HCLTech’s UMDR and analytics layer. These unified services help enterprises achieve continuous compliance and posture improvement through Zero Trust Maturity programs aligned with industry frameworks.
Jain also highlighted several emerging co-developed solutions. “Our joint offerings include AI and Data Protection, Attack Surface Management with CTEM, SASE-enabled Zero-Infra Branch, and Cloud Workload Protection,” he said. “Each of these is designed to simplify tool sprawl, improve compliance, and deliver measurable risk reduction, key outcomes that boards and CISOs are prioritizing.”
These capabilities underscore a pragmatic approach to digital transformation, where technology modernization is guided by measurable outcomes rather than technology adoption for its own sake.
A Platform-Centric Partner Ecosystem
HCLTech’s open, platform-driven delivery model is central to expanding the ecosystem around this alliance. While the company operates as a global systems integrator (GSI), it collaborates with security vendors to extend the reach of joint solutions.
“HCLTech’s CSFC-centered delivery model creates touchpoints for regional partners, ranging from assessment and migration projects to ongoing co-managed operations,” Jain explained. “Partners can plug into standardized runbooks, AI-enabled SOC workflows, and reporting to extend services locally while maintaining global consistency and responsible AI guardrails.”
He emphasized that HCLTech’s platform already integrates with key security and identity partners, including CrowdStrike, SailPoint, Okta, Saviynt, Microsoft Azure, and Rubrik, allowing clients to consolidate security functions without adding unnecessary tools. “As enterprises scale digital and AI-led initiatives, we’re seeing growing demand for identity modernization, application segmentation, and secure connectivity across hybrid and multi-cloud environments,” he said.
Jain concluded that the partnership will help customers translate AI and zero trust into tangible business value. “This collaboration enables joint customers to derive stronger outcomes and a more resilient security posture as they consume AI-powered zero trust and network transformation services,” he said.
