OpenAI Begins Hiring Ahead of Plans to Open First Office in India by 2025-End

OpenAI has confirmed that it will open its first office in India by the end of this year. Announced by a company executive, the office is set to open in New Delhi. Additionally, the company has also begun hiring new employees, before it sets up operations in the country. OpenAI currently has only a single employee in India. The development comes after the company recently announced a new, cheaper alternative to the ChatGPT Plus and Pro subscription plans in the country, making the AI chatbot more accessible to users at a lower price point.

OpenAI's First Office in India Will Be Located in New Delhi

OpenAI's Head of Communications for the Asia-Pacific region, Jake Wilczynski, confirmed via a LinkedIn post that the AI company is expanding its presence in India by opening its first office in New Delhi. Along with the confirmation, the company executive also said that the first office will be opened by the end of 2025.

Wilczynski said that India is ChatGPT's second-largest market by the number of users, after the US. He added that the number of weekly active users of ChatGPT in India jumped by more than four times in “just the past year”. OpenAI also lists India among the top five developer markets globally, he said, while adding that India has the highest number of students on ChatGPT.

Pragya Misra, Public Policy Head at OpenAI, is currently the only OpenAI staffer in the country, according to Bloomberg. She was also the company's first hire in the country, and is responsible for coordinating public policy affairs between OpenAI and the government, along with other entities in the country.

OpenAI has already published three India-specific job postings on its website. All three roles are for the sales department, the first being the Account Director for Digital Natives, followed by the positions of Account Director, Large Enterprise, and Account Director, Strategics.

By its admission, India is the second-largest market for OpenAI's ChatGPT. Hence, it has also been focusing on increasing its presence in the country. The tech firm recently announced that it is introducing a new, relatively affordable subscription plan, dubbed ChatGPT GO, in the Indian market.

OpenAI's ChatGPT Plus and Pro plans currently cost Rs. 1,999 and Rs. 19,900 per month, respectively. Meanwhile, the new ChatGPT Go plan has been priced at Rs. 399 per month. The plan carries some added benefits over the free plan, like higher message limits, larger file uploads, and expanded image generation capabilities.