Anthropic has hired Irina Ghose, a 24-year Microsoft veteran and former managing director of Microsoft India, to head its India operations as the AI startup prepares to open a Bengaluru office.
At a Glance
- Ghose stepped down from Microsoft in December 2025 and will now steer Anthropic’s India push
- India is already Anthropic’s second-largest market for Claude, with usage dominated by software development and technical tasks
- Claude app downloads in India jumped 48% year-over-year in September to roughly 767,000 installs
- Why it matters: The hire signals Anthropic’s intent to convert surging Indian usage into paid enterprise deals before rivals lock up the market
The appointment lands as India becomes a must-win geography for AI giants. OpenAI is plotting a New Delhi office, while Perplexity and Google have already sealed telecom partnerships to reach the country’s 700 million smartphone users.
Inside Ghose’s Mandate
Ghose will target Indian enterprises, developers, and startups deploying Claude for “mission-critical” workloads, according to her LinkedIn announcement. She flagged local-language AI as a “force multiplier” for education and healthcare-hinting at plans to move beyond English-speaking tech professionals.
Her enterprise relationships, forged during two decades at Microsoft, give Anthropic immediate credibility with CIOs and government officials. Chief executive Dario Amodei leaned on those channels during an October visit, meeting Prime Minister Narendra Modi and local business leaders to discuss expansion and regulation.
Revenue Reality Check
Scale has yet to equal revenue. Indian consumers spent $195,000 on Claude in September-up 572% year-over-year but still a fraction of the $2.5 million generated in the U.S. the same month.
OpenAI has responded with ChatGPT Go, an under-$5 plan introduced last year and later offered free for 12 months. Anthropic is expected to test similarly aggressive pricing as it races to sign up price-sensitive users before monetizing them.
Telecom Gatekeepers
Distribution may decide the winners. Reliance Jio bundled Google’s Gemini AI Pro free for subscribers after reportedly holding talks with Anthropic. Rival Bharti Airtel followed by packaging Perplexity Premium with its plans, turning India’s carriers into kingmakers for consumer AI reach.
Anthropic’s job board reflects the new urgency: listings in Bengaluru include startup account executive, enterprise account executive, and partner sales manager-all aimed at forging local alliances and closing B2B deals.
Summit Countdown
The India AI Impact Summit 2026 convenes in February, gathering global CEOs, domestic startups, and regulators to chart the next phase of deployment. New Delhi is using the event to signal support for home-grown AI ventures and to position India as more than a downstream market.
Despite India’s vast software talent, investors have steered capital toward application-layer startups rather than costly foundation-model builders. Anthropic, OpenAI, and Google now face the challenge of nurturing paid usage in a landscape accustomed to freemium software.
Key Takeaways
- Irina Ghose’s hire plugs Anthropic into India’s enterprise and government networks overnight
- 48% download growth shows surging demand, but sub-$200k monthly spend underscores monetization challenges
- Telecom partnerships are emerging as the fastest route to mass Indian users
- February’s AI summit could set regulatory tone just as Anthropic’s Bengaluru office comes online
