In a significant leadership move reflecting the rapid acceleration of artificial intelligence adoption in India, Nitin Bawankule has been appointed Head of Enterprise Sales, India at OpenAI. He will take on the role starting mid-May, as the company sharpens its focus on enterprise growth in one of its most strategic global markets.
Announcing his new role, Bawankule said, “I am excited to share that starting mid-May, I will be joining OpenAI as Head of Enterprise Sales, India. As AI transforms how businesses operate, build, and grow, enterprises in India are moving quickly and the opportunity ahead is enormous.”
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With over 30 years of experience across technology, media, and digital ecosystems, Bawankule brings deep industry insight and a proven leadership track record. He has previously held key roles at Google India, where he worked on advancing digital transformation initiatives, and at Disney+ Hotstar, where he drove scale and growth across digital and linear video platforms. Most recently, at Amazon Web Services, he led multiple industry verticals, including telecom, media, automotive, manufacturing, retail, healthcare, and logistics, with a focus on accelerating cloud and AI adoption in India.
At OpenAI, Bawankule is expected to play a critical role in helping enterprises transition from experimental AI deployments to organisation-wide transformation. Outlining his vision, he added, “I am looking forward to partnering with industry leaders and teams across sectors to help them move from isolated AI pilots to company-wide transformation, embed AI into everyday workflows to unlock productivity, creativity, and better decision-making, and build responsibly to create lasting business value with AI.”
Industry experts view this appointment as a strategic step by OpenAI to deepen its enterprise engagement in India, where demand for scalable and practical AI solutions is growing rapidly. Bawankule’s experience in building high-performing teams and driving revenue growth across sectors is expected to strengthen OpenAI’s positioning in the market.
Earlier in his career, he also managed regional sales operations for Godrej GE Appliances, gaining strong experience in channel management and market expansion across Western and Southern Maharashtra. Expressing gratitude as he transitions into his new role, Bawankule said, “A heartfelt thank you to the teams, customers, and colleagues I have worked with over the years. I have learned from some of the very best. The next chapter begins in a few weeks.”
