Sandhya Devanathan to join OpenAI

Devanathan will be joining OpenAI as VP, SEA and Australia

by e4m Staff
Published: Aug 28, 2026 4:31 PM | 2 min read

Sandhya Devanathan has been appointed as Vice President for Southeast Asia and Australia at OpenAI, based in Singapore.
She will report to Kiran Mani, Managing Director for APAC & Japan, and previously served as Vice President & Head for India and Southeast Asia at Meta.
Devanathan announced her departure from Meta after over a decade, expressing gratitude for her experiences and colleagues.
With over 20 years of experience in banking, payments, and technology, she has played a significant role in expanding Meta's business in Southeast Asia, particularly in e-commerce and gaming.

Sandhya Devanathan will be joining OpenAI as VP, SEA and Australia, e4m has learnt. She will be based in Singapore. She will be reporting in to Kiran Mani, Managing Director, APAC & Japan.

Devanathan was earlier with Meta as Vice President & Head - India and South East Asia. She moved on from the company after more than a decade.

In her post, announcing her decision to exit Meta, Devanathan wrote, "After more than a decade at Meta, I’ve made the bittersweet decision to move on to my next adventure. Saying goodbye to this incredible company and my amazing colleagues has been really difficult, but I leave with a heart full of gratitude and excitement about what lies ahead".

In her post, Devanathan also mentioned that she will share more on her next chapter soon. "After a short break, I’m looking forward to my next exciting chapter - will share more on that soon", she said.

Devanathan is a global business leader with over two decades of experience and an international career in banking, payments and technology. She joined Meta in 2016 and helped build out the Singapore and Vietnam businesses and teams as well as Meta’s e-commerce initiatives in Southeast Asia. In 2020, she moved to lead Gaming for APAC which is one of the largest verticals for Meta globally.

In 2022, she was named as Vice President of Meta India. In her role, she focused on bringing the organization’s business and revenue priorities together to serve its partners and clients, while continuing to support the long-term growth of Meta’s business and commitment to India.