{
  "id": 3961965,
  "title": "Meta executive leaves for OpenAI as the social media giant faces growing scrutiny in India",
  "url": "https://urgent.news/2026/08/28/meta-executive-leaves-for-openai-as-the-social-media-giant-faces",
  "topic": "ai",
  "section": "AI",
  "published": "2026-08-28T12:21:06.000Z",
  "source": {
    "name": "TechCrunch",
    "slug": "techcrunch",
    "url": "https://techcrunch.com/2026/08/28/meta-executive-leaves-for-openai-as-the-social-media-giant-faces-growing-scrutiny-in-india/"
  },
  "original_language": "en",
  "account": "Meta's India and Southeast Asia vice president, Sandhya Devanathan, is departing the social media giant to join OpenAI, the creator of ChatGPT, according to TechCrunch. Devanathan will relocate to Singapore and report to OpenAI's Asia-Pacific managing director, Kiran Mani. Her responsibilities will encompass consumer expansion, enterprise adoption, partnerships, regulatory engagement, and operations across Southeast Asia and Australia. Devanathan has been with Meta for over a decade, during which she held various leadership roles, including leading Meta's Asia Pacific gaming business. She joined Meta in 2016. OpenAI has been expanding its presence in the Asia Pacific region, establishing offices in Singapore, Tokyo, Seoul, Sydney, and Delhi in the past two years. Following Devanathan's departure, Meta's India managing director, Arun Srinivas, will report directly to Benjamin Joe, Meta's vice president for Asia-Pacific. This move comes amid growing scrutiny of Meta in India. The company recently apologized after Instagram inadvertently restricted a post by Prime Minister Narendra Modi in July. Indian authorities have summoned Meta executives, including its chief global affairs officer, Joel Kaplan, over this incident. Additionally, New Delhi has raised concerns regarding child sexual abuse material on Meta's platforms. Last month, the Indian government sought clarification from Meta following a BBC report that revealed Instagram advertisements allegedly offering access to such content. The company stated that it had removed violating ads and accounts, but clarified that it did not knowingly target such advertisements at users based on inappropriate interests. Meta also noted that it had removed 160,000 accounts in India over six months due to signals indicating child-exploitative activity.",
  "summary": "Sandhya Devanathan will oversee some OpenAI operations across Southeast Asia and Australia in her new role.",
  "key_points": [],
  "editors_take": null,
  "illustration": null,
  "coverage": {
    "outlets": 7,
    "also_reported_by": [
      {
        "outlet": "Inc42",
        "title": "OpenAI Rolls Out ChatGPT Ads In India",
        "url": "https://urgent.news/2026/08/27/openai-rolls-out-chatgpt-ads-in-india",
        "published": "2026-08-27T08:19:20.000Z"
      },
      {
        "outlet": "Times of India",
        "title": "OpenAI rolls out ChatGPT ads in India, over 50 brands on board",
        "url": "https://urgent.news/2026/08/27/openai-rolls-out-chatgpt-ads-in-india-over-50-brands-on-board",
        "published": "2026-08-27T21:09:37.000Z"
      },
      {
        "outlet": "CNBC Technology",
        "title": "OpenAI rolls out ads on select ChatGPT plans in India to boost monetization, support wider access",
        "url": "https://urgent.news/2026/08/28/openai-rolls-out-ads-on-select-chatgpt-plans-in-india-to-boost",
        "published": "2026-08-28T03:29:45.000Z"
      },
      {
        "outlet": "Seeking Alpha News",
        "title": "OpenAI launches ads on select ChatGPT plans in India",
        "url": "https://urgent.news/2026/08/28/openai-launches-ads-on-select-chatgpt-plans-in-india",
        "published": "2026-08-28T05:32:21.000Z"
      },
      {
        "outlet": "Techmeme",
        "title": "Meta's India and Southeast Asia VP Sandhya Devanathan is joining OpenAI to oversee consumer growth and enterprise adoption across SE Asia and Australia (Jagmeet Singh/TechCrunch)",
        "url": "https://urgent.news/2026/08/28/metas-india-and-southeast-asia-vp-sandhya-devanathan-is-joining",
        "published": "2026-08-28T13:06:10.000Z"
      },
      {
        "outlet": "Quartz",
        "title": "OpenAI is bringing ChatGPT ads to India as it ramps up revenue ahead of IPO",
        "url": "https://urgent.news/2026/08/28/openai-is-bringing-chatgpt-ads-to-india-as-it-ramps-up-revenue-ahead",
        "published": "2026-08-28T13:20:38.000Z"
      }
    ]
  },
  "ai_generated": true,
  "disclaimer": "Summaries, key points and the editor’s take are written by software from other outlets’ reporting and may contain errors — always check the linked original."
}