Anthropic India Operations are entering a new phase as the AI startup appoints Irina Ghose to lead its business in the country. The company has hired Ghose, former Managing Director of Microsoft India, as it prepares to establish its first office in India. The move signals Anthropic’s growing focus on India as a strategic market for scaling its AI products and partnerships.
Ghose brings with her more than two decades of experience in the technology sector. She spent 24 years at Microsoft India, where she held several leadership roles and was most recently the company’s Managing Director before stepping down in December 2025. Her deep understanding of enterprise technology, public-sector engagement, and large-scale digital transformation positions her as a strong leader for Anthropic India operations.
The senior executive confirmed her new role through a LinkedIn post, where she highlighted India’s readiness for widespread AI adoption. According to Ghose, the country is moving from experimentation to scaled deployment of AI across industries. She emphasized that AI systems tuned to local languages could significantly amplify impact across education, healthcare, workforce development, and job skills.
Ghose also expressed excitement about engaging with India’s growing ecosystem of leaders, innovators, and builders. She noted that Anthropic’s AI chatbot Claude has strong potential to unlock new possibilities in the Indian market. Her role will involve building local teams, strengthening partnerships, and guiding the company’s long-term strategy in the region.
Anthropic’s leadership believes Ghose is the right choice to spearhead this expansion. Chris Ciauri, Managing Director of International at Anthropic, said her expertise in scaling technology businesses and driving enterprise transformation makes her ideal for the role. He added that as Anthropic deepens its engagement with India’s public and private sectors, local insight will be critical to staying aligned with the company’s mission.
The appointment comes as Anthropic actively expands its presence in India. The company has posted several job openings, including roles for startup and enterprise account executives and a partner sales manager. These hires point to a broader go-to-market strategy aimed at serving both fast-growing startups and large enterprises adopting AI at scale.
India’s importance to global AI companies continues to rise. With more than a billion internet users and over 700 million smartphone users, the country offers massive growth potential. India is already the second-largest market for Anthropic’s Claude chatbot, with usage largely driven by technical applications such as programming and software development.
Data further underlines this momentum. Anthropic’s Claude app recorded a 48 percent year-on-year increase in downloads in India as of September 2025. The app reached 767,000 installations in that month alone, while consumer spending surged by 72 percent to $195,000, according to Appfigures. These numbers reflect both growing awareness and increasing willingness to pay for advanced AI tools.
Ghose’s appointment also aligns with key policy and industry developments. It comes ahead of the India-AI Impact Summit 2026, scheduled to take place in New Delhi from February 15 to 20. The event is expected to bring together global leaders, policymakers, startups, and experts to discuss AI governance and adoption, particularly from the perspective of the Global South.
Anthropic has already been strengthening ties with Indian stakeholders. In October last year, CEO Dario Amodei visited India and met Prime Minister Narendra Modi, lawmakers, and corporate leaders. These discussions reportedly focused on expansion plans and the growing adoption of Anthropic’s AI tools in the country.
With Irina Ghose at the helm, Anthropic India operations are poised for accelerated growth. Her leadership marks a significant step in the company’s efforts to localize its approach, deepen market penetration, and play a larger role in shaping India’s AI future.
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