The creator of ChatGPT, OpenAI, made its first hire in India, selecting a head of government relations concurrently with the nation’s election of a new government that will determine the laws governing artificial intelligence in the most populous country on earth.
The Microsoft Corp.-backed company has reportedly appointed Pragya Misra to oversee public policy affairs and partnerships in India, as per sources familiar with the matter. Misra, aged 39, brings prior experience from roles at Truecaller AB and Meta Platforms Inc. and is expected to commence her role at OpenAI by the end of the month.
The hire demonstrates the generative AI company’s attempts to advocate for favorable regulations as global governments contemplate how to manage the quickly advancing technology.
With 1.4 billion people and a rapidly expanding economy, India presents a huge growth opportunity for international tech companies. However, because of lawmakers and regulators looking to protect local businesses from being trampled, India has proven to be challenging to traverse.
Before this, Misra oversaw public affairs for Truecaller, a top market for India-based contact verification service that is traded on the Stockholm exchange. She had previously spearheaded WhatsApp’s 2018 campaign against false information while working at Meta Platforms Inc.
Google, a division of Alphabet Inc., is one of the competitors of OpenAI in India; it is creating an AI model tailored for the nation. With its product’s ability to support over 100 local languages for both speech and text, internet access will be expanded beyond the nation’s metropolitan English-speaking minority.
During his visit to India last year, OpenAI Chief Executive Officer Sam Altman stated that nations like India should fund AI research in ways that would enhance public services like health care.
At the time, Altman stated, “The main thing that I think is important is figuring out how to integrate these technologies into other services. That is an area that I think governments are behind on, and don’t have the answers yet.”
During his visit, Altman, who met with Prime Minister Narendra Modi, mentioned India’s early adoption of ChatGPT. He has expressed concerns about the potential harm of AI and called for future regulations as the technology evolves.
Also Read: OpenAI’s Altman Boosts for Global AI Infrastructure Alliance
