OpenAI CEO Sam Altman plans to visit India as AI leaders meet in New Delhi: sources

OpenAI CEO Sam Altman plans to visit India in mid-February, his first visit to the country in nearly a year, TechCrunch has learned. The visit comes as New Delhi prepares to host a major AI conference that is expected to draw executives from Meta, Google, and Anthropic.

India is hosting its first major AI event – the India AI Impact Summit 2026 – in New Delhi between February 16 and 20, including world leaders in technology including the CEO of Nvidia Jensen Huang, CEO of Google Sundar Photosi, and CEO of Anthropic Dario Amodei along with Indian businessmen such as the chairman of Reliance Industries Mukesh Ambani, at the conference. website. Altman is not listed here as an attendee.

But TechCrunch has learned that OpenAI plans to separately hold closed-door meetings on the sidelines of the conference in New Delhi, where Altman is expected to attend. The company is also hosting an OpenAI event in New Delhi on February 19, where economists and industry executives have been invited, one person familiar with the matter said.

Altman’s visit has not been publicly announced and plans are subject to change, sources said.

Several other US companies are also planning side events around the conference week. Anthropic will host a developer day in Bengaluru on February 16, the company confirmed to TechCrunch. Nvidia is also expected to hold an evening event in New Delhi during the conference week, people familiar with the plans told TechCrunch. (The GPU maker did not respond to a request for comment.) The group of events underscores how global AI companies are looking to connect with Indian customers, startups, and developers.

The visit will be Altman’s first visit to India in nearly a year he went to the country in February 2025. Altman previously said planned to return later in 2025 following OpenAI’s August announcement of a New Delhi Officebut the journey did not take place.

Altman’s visit also comes as India has emerged as a key market for American AI companies. In recent months, Anthropic announced an office in Bengaluru and was named as the former CEO of Microsoft India Irina Ghose as their common theme, right Google and Mental confusion partnered with Reliance Jio and Bharti Airtel, respectively, to extend AI subscriptions to millions of telecom users.

OpenAI has been expanding its presence in India in recent months, writing a job Business marketing, technology deployment and legal roles focused on AI management. The company is currently listing openings in New Delhi, Mumbai, and Bengaluru. India has emerged as ChatGPT’s largest marketplace for downloads and second in user growth. However, OpenAI has faced difficulties converting that demand into paid subscriptions, introducing the low-cost “ChatGPT Go” plan Last year the price was under $5 free delivery for a year to chase the fall.

Altman is expected to meet with technology executives, startup founders, and government officials during the trip, sources said, as OpenAI looks to expand ChatGPT’s enterprise adoption and expand its reach as a major market. The company has been involved in several sectors in India, including education and media, the people added.

OpenAI is also looking at India as a potential source of infrastructure expansion, sources said. Last year, both Google and Microsoft announced billions of dollars in India to enhancing their AI and cloud features. But India’s appetite for data facial obstacles including inconsistent energy availability, high energy costs and water shortages in several regions – factors that can slow down the construction of AI infrastructure and raise operational costs for cloud providers.

However, the Indian government hopes that the upcoming conference will strengthen India as a destination for major AI investments. The country’s IT minister said in a recent interview that the event would help attract up to $100 billion in Investment. The federal government is also pushing homegrown initiatives make small samples for local use cases, ultimately reducing reliance on US systems.

OpenAI, India’s IT ministry, and the organizers of the AI ​​summit did not respond to a request for comment.