10 points on Pragya Misra, OpenAI’s first hire in India

Pragya Misra, 39, has been chosen as OpenAI's first India hire

OpenAI has hired Pragya Misra as its first employee in India, Bloomberg reported citing sources. Misra has been appointed government relations head at a time when India is voting in the 2024 Lok Sabha Elections, which will decide whether Prime Minister Narendra Modi will return to power for a third time.

Here are 10 things to know about OpenAI’s first India hire, Pragya Misra:

Pragya Misra, 39, has been appointed government relations head by OpenAI, making her the first India hire for the ChatGPT developer.

The appointment is not yet public, although people familiar with the matter said Misra has been recruited to lead public policy affairs and partnerships in India.

Since July 2021, Misra has been acting as Director of Public Affairs for Truecaller – a position which requires her to work closely with government ministries, key stakeholders, investors and media partners to take the company’s agenda forward.

Before this, she was with Meta Platforms Inc for three years. At Meta, Pragya Misra led WhatsApp’s campaign against misinformation in 2018.

She has also worked as Ernst & Young and the Royal Danish Embassy in New Delhi.

Misra received her MBA from International Management Institute in 2012, according to her LinkedIn profile.

She is a graduate in commerce from Delhi University and holds a Diploma in Bargaining and Negotiations from the London School of Economics and Political Science.

Pragya Misra hosts the Pragyaan Podcast, where the topics range from meditation, consciousness and more. She is a podcaster and an Instagram influencer (@pragyaan_podcast) with a follower base of 35,000.

She is also a keen golfer and has represented India at several international tournaments between 1998 and 2007.

She is a Heartfulness Meditation Trainer and an advocate on the benefits of meditation.