Former Google executive Arvind KC joins OpenAI as CPO

OpenAI has appointed former Google executive Arvind KC as its chief people officer, bringing in a senior technology leader as the artificial intelligence company scales its workforce and organisational systems.

KC has previously held leadership roles at Google, Roblox, Palantir Technologies and Meta, combining engineering experience with people and operations oversight. He will now lead hiring, onboarding, talent development and workplace systems at one of the world’s fastest-growing AI companies.

The appointment comes as OpenAI continues to expand rapidly following the global uptake of generative AI tools. The company has grown sharply since launching ChatGPT in late 2022, increasing headcount, broadening enterprise partnerships and deepening its product portfolio.

In a statement, Fidji Simo, OpenAI’s CEO of Applications, said the company’s approach to scaling must align with the technological future it is helping to shape. She said KC would ensure that OpenAI’s “people processes, policies and systems match our ambition, while preserving the culture and operating principles that have helped us get here”.

KC’s mandate extends beyond traditional human resources oversight. OpenAI said the role will focus on building systems that enable technical teams to operate at speed without compromising collaboration or performance standards. That includes strengthening recruitment pipelines, refining organisational design and embedding policies that support sustained high output.

In his statement, KC described the appointment as taking place at a moment when companies are rethinking how work is structured in response to AI-driven change. He said organisations must reconsider “how work happens, what teams need, how people grow, and how to adapt as the tools change”.

The hire signals OpenAI’s recognition that talent strategy is now central to its competitive positioning. As AI reshapes workflows across industries, technology companies face pressure to attract specialised engineering talent while also redesigning roles and upskilling existing teams.

Industry analysts have noted that large AI labs are competing aggressively for researchers, infrastructure specialists and applied engineers. At the same time, companies are under scrutiny to demonstrate responsible deployment of AI tools internally as well as externally.

OpenAI said its chief people officer would play a key role in navigating this transition, including how roles evolve and how employees build new capabilities as automation increases. The company also indicated that lessons from its internal transformation may eventually be shared with customers and partners.

KC joins at a time when governance, organisational resilience and workforce design are increasingly viewed as strategic levers rather than back-office functions in high-growth AI firms.

As OpenAI moves deeper into enterprise services and global partnerships, its ability to align rapid product innovation with durable people systems will shape its next phase of expansion.

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