Who is Kiran Mani? OpenAI hires India’s JioStar CEO to head up Asia-Pacific

OpenAI has appointed Kiran Mani, CEO of the Indian streaming service JioStar, to a newly created role overseeing its Asia-Pacific operations, according to a Bloomberg report.

Mani will assume the position of managing director for the region in June, based out of OpenAI’s Singapore office, and will report to Chief Strategy Officer Jason Kwon.

OpenAI is competing with rivals such as Anthropic PBC and Google (Alphabet Inc.) to attract users, with Asia’s large and growing markets offering major opportunities. India, home to over 1.4 billion people, is particularly important for the company, Bloomberg reported.

JioStar, a joint venture between Reliance Industries Ltd. and Walt Disney Co., operates the JioHotstar streaming platform. The service has leveraged India’s passion for cricket and demand for soap operas and reality shows, amassing a subscriber base exceeding 300 million.

In 2024, OpenAI hired its first employee in India, a head of government relations, and has been steadily increasing its workforce in the country since then. In February, the company announced a collaboration with the Tata Group to develop artificial intelligence technologies, including the construction of data centre infrastructure.

Who is Kiran Mani?

Kiran Mani has 25 years of experience in developing and scaling multi-billion-dollar digital platforms and ecosystems, with expertise in consumer technology, mobile, cloud, and media streaming, according to his LinkedIn profile.

Before joining JioStar, he served as CEO of Viacom18’s digital business, where he focused on expanding streaming and digital media operations.

Earlier, Mani held senior leadership roles at Google as General Manager and Managing Director for the Android and Google Play ecosystems across Asia Pacific and Japan. His career also includes strategic positions at Microsoft and IBM, with responsibilities spanning India, the U.S., and the Asia-Pacific region.

Kiran Mani's education

Kiran holds strong academic credentials in finance, strategy, and management. He is a Chartered Financial Analyst, with specialisation in Economics, Finance, and Analytics, from the Institute of Chartered Financial Analysts (1996–1998), where he was a National Merit Scholar, according to his LinkedIn profile.

Concurrently, he completed his PGDBA (Post Graduate Diploma in Business Administration) from IBS Hyderabad (1996–1998), graduating as the National Topper and Merit Scholar with a focus on Business Strategy, Management, and Marketing.

He also participated in the prestigious IBM Marketing Leadership Development Program (2006–2008), a global two-year training and development initiative conducted in association with leading business schools and IBM's executive leadership, according to his LinkedIn profile.

(With inputs from Bloomberg)