OpenAI is opening its first India office in New Delhi later this year. The company has quietly set up a local entity in India and started hiring for senior roles. It’s a clear sign that India is about to become a lot more central to how OpenAI operates.

The announcement comes days after the recent launch of ChatGPT Go, a ₹399/month plan tailored to local users. Together, these shifts suggest India isn’t just a large user base anymore. It’s becoming a priority market.

India isn’t just a user base anymore. It’s a business opportunity.

OpenAI has long had users in India. But now it’s building for them.

India is the company’s second-largest market globally, and Sam Altman says weekly active users have grown fourfold over the past year. It also happens to be the single largest student user base on ChatGPT. That level of traction turns a market into something more – a reason to invest, localize, and show up in person.

we are opening our first office in india later this year! and i'm looking forward to visiting next month.

ai adoption in india has been amazing to watch–chatgpt users grew 4x in the past year–and we are excited to invest much more in india!

— Sam Altman (@sama) August 22, 2025

That’s exactly what OpenAI is doing. Just days before announcing the Delhi office, it launched ChatGPT Go in India at ₹399/month (the most affordable plan globally). And the timing isn’t a coincidence. With a massive base of free users, India is now seen as fertile ground for turning usage into revenue, especially through locally priced tiers and enterprise sales.

That last part is already underway. OpenAI has quietly opened up senior Account Director roles focused on three segments: Digital Natives, Large Enterprises, and Strategics. These roles signal a deliberate shift toward B2B sales, targeting Indian conglomerates, global firms operating in India, and tech-forward local players. These roles will likely lead conversations around ChatGPT Enterprise, API integrations, and possibly even channel partnerships with system integrators.

But OpenAI isn’t alone. In India, the AI race is heating up. Google’s Gemini is expanding language coverage and pushing mobile-native adoption. Perplexity AI just partnered with Airtel, offering bundled access to its pro features through mobile data plans. These are moves that go beyond the product. They’re about distribution and reach.

Let’s just say – OpenAI is not longer just building in India. It’s starting to sell.

Presence matters. Especially when policy is in play.

There’s a reason OpenAI picked New Delhi. It’s not where most developers are. It’s where decisions get made.

By setting up an office in the capital city, OpenAI is definitely positioning itself closer to the central ministries, regulators, and the team behind the IndiaAI Mission. In case you don’t know, IndiaAI Mission is the government’s flagship initiative to promote inclusive, secure, and scaled AI infrastructure.

OpenAI seems to be walking through it carefully. In the past year, it’s built a policy foundation through public engagements, partnerships, and quiet hires. Pragya Misra was appointed to lead public policy and partnerships in India, and Rishi Jaitly (Twitter’s former India head) came on board as a senior adviser for government engagement. Together, they’ve laid groundwork not just for compliance, but for trust-building with the ecosystem.

But Delhi is also where the pressure lives.

OpenAI, like other global AI firms, is under scrutiny for how its models are trained and how it handles data. While OpenAI keeps denying any wrongdoing, the conversation is far from over. A local office means the company can no longer operate from a distance. It will have to engage and answer media houses – transparently and often.

There’s also the matter of data. As usage grows in India, questions around data residency, user privacy, and compliance with Indian laws will be asked. Louder and more often. So far, OpenAI hasn’t disclosed its data handling approach in India, but we can assume that regulators will be watching closely.

At the same time, this proximity to government definitely opens up new possibilities. With the IndiaAI Mission, OpenAI could become a partner, or at least a regular at the table.

So, overall, Delhi becomes more than a symbolic choice. It becomes a platform for policy, partnerships, and long-term influence.

A Delhi office. A developer day. The story’s just starting.

OpenAI has made its announcement & the hiring has begun.

This month, the company is planning an Education Summit. A Developer Day is also on the cards later this year. And honestly, these aren’t just mere events. They are community touchpoints. They are how OpenAI plans to meet their core audience (students, builders, & partners) in their space (classrooms, campuses, or codebases).

This kind of presence signals long-term intent, not just a market launch.

And it’s not just the team on the ground. Sam Altman is returning to India in September, for the second time in the past 2 years. But this time, the backdrop is very different. OpenAI now has a registered entity and a growing local team.