OpenAI has appointed former JioStar digital CEO Kiran Mani to lead its Asia-Pacific operations. According to Bloomberg, Mani will join OpenAI as Managing Director for Asia-Pacific in June and will relocate to Singapore, where the company runs its regional hub. He will report to Chief Strategy Officer Jason Kwon. The appointment comes at a time when the ChatGPT maker is increasing its focus on India and the wider region as it pushes for the next phase of global expansion.
Mani previously headed the digital business at JioStar, the Reliance-Disney joint venture that runs streaming platform JioHotstar along with a large portfolio of TV and digital entertainment properties. He has spent over two decades working across digital media, technology and consumer internet companies, and has been closely involved in building large-scale online platforms in India.
At JioStar, he led product, growth and digital strategy, helping the company expand its reach in one of the world’s fastest-growing streaming markets. His experience in scaling consumer platforms and working with telecom, media and technology partners is expected to be useful for OpenAI as it looks to build deeper partnerships across Asia-Pacific.
Kiran Mani’s role at OpenAI
At OpenAI, Mani will oversee business strategy, partnerships and market expansion across the region, which includes India, Japan, South Korea, Southeast Asia and Australia. The company has been seeing strong demand for its AI models from enterprises, developers and governments in these markets, especially as organisations look to adopt generative AI for coding, customer support, content creation and automation.
OpenAI’s big plans for India
The appointment comes as OpenAI is increasingly treating India as one of its most important growth markets. The company recently announced its “OpenAI for India” initiative, a programme focused on building local infrastructure, supporting start-ups and developers, and expanding enterprise adoption of AI tools. OpenAI said India is already one of the largest user bases for ChatGPT globally, and the next phase of growth will depend on closer local partnerships.
As part of this push, the ChatGPT maker has also said it plans to expand its presence in the country, including opening new offices and increasing hiring. OpenAI is working with Indian partners to build local data-centre capacity so that its models can run within the country, helping meet data-residency requirements and reducing latency for businesses and developers.
The appointment of a senior executive from one of India’s biggest digital platforms also shows that OpenAI wants stronger regional leadership instead of running Asia-Pacific operations mainly from the United States. The company is competing with rivals such as Google, Anthropic and several Chinese AI firms, all of which are investing heavily in international markets where governments and enterprises want local AI infrastructure and customised solutions.
