OpenAI appoints former Uber India head Prabhjeet Singh as first India managing director

OpenAI has appointed Prabhjeet Singh as its first managing director for India, tapping the former Uber India and South Asia president to lead operations in the company's second largest market after the United States. The appointment, announced June 26, 2026, signals a strategic escalation of OpenAI's presence in a country where it already has a large user base but faces growing competition from local AI startups and global rivals.

India contributes roughly 12% of OpenAI's global monthly active users, according to internal company figures shared with TechCrunch. The country has become a critical testing ground for AI adoption, with millions of developers, students, and enterprises using ChatGPT and OpenAI's APIs for everything from coding to content generation.

Why Singh was chosen

Singh spent six years at Uber, most recently as president of Uber India and South Asia, where he oversaw a team of thousands and managed regulatory battles, driver partner relations, and expansion into new cities. His experience navigating India's complex policy environment and building large scale operations directly maps to OpenAI's needs. The company is currently expanding its office footprint in New Delhi and Bangalore and plans to hire over 200 engineers and policy staff in the next 12 months.

• Singh will report directly to OpenAI's CEO, giving the India unit significant autonomy in local decision making.
• OpenAI plans to invest heavily in Hindi language model customization and partnerships with Indian educational institutions.
• The company is also in talks with several Indian state governments to deploy AI in public services, including healthcare and agriculture.
• India's data localization requirements and upcoming AI regulation mean local leadership is essential for compliance and trust.

Regulatory headwinds and competition

India's IT ministry is drafting a comprehensive AI law expected to require foreign AI companies to store certain training data locally and submit to algorithmic audits. By placing a veteran operator like Singh in charge, OpenAI is signaling its willingness to comply and engage constructively with regulators. The move also counterbalances the rise of domestic AI firms such as Krutrim, Sarvam AI, and Cohere's Indian operations, which have been aggressively courting government contracts.

Singh's first major task will be to finalize OpenAI's India data center strategy. The company is evaluating cloud partnerships with local providers like Jio Platforms and Tata Communications to reduce latency for Indian users and meet data residency rules. Sources indicate a formal announcement could come within the next quarter.