OpenAI has named Emmanuel Marill as its first Managing Director for Europe, the Middle East and Africa, as the company expands across international markets.
Marill, joining from Airbnb, where he held a similar leadership role, will oversee operations across the region and will be based in Paris.
The appointment gives OpenAI a senior executive focused solely on a region where demand for its products is increasing, but where political and business issues about dependence on American technology are also growing.
Emmanuel Marill will report to Jason Kwon, chief strategy officer at OpenAI.
“As demand for ChatGPT and Codex continues to grow rapidly all over the world, we are investing significantly in our international leadership and operations,” Kwon said in a statement.
OpenAI has been aiming to win more paying business customers as it faces the high cost of developing new artificial intelligence systems. Europe is an important market, although some officials and company leaders have urged stronger support for home-grown technology firms.
French startup Mistral AI has positioned itself as a European alternative to major US companies such as OpenAI.
At the same time, OpenAI is still reviewing parts of its infrastructure plans in the region. Earlier this month, the company paused its Stargate data centre project in the United Kingdom, citing regulation and energy costs.
Microsoft, one of OpenAI’s biggest backers, later agreed to rent data centre capacity in Norway that had originally been linked to the project. OpenAI said it is still exploring a separate computing agreement there.
Marill will also lead the company’s efforts in the Middle East, where OpenAI has invested heavily, especially in the United Arab Emirates.
Its partner in the country, G42, recently said plans for a large data centre project is still on track despite tensions linked to the US conflict with Iran.
OpenAI has also signed agreements with businesses in banking, pharmaceuticals and media across Europe. It has worked with governments in Germany, Greece and Ireland, while also planning to increase staff numbers in London.
The company said in February that business subscriptions across Europe, the Middle East and Africa had grown sevenfold over the previous year, though it did not disclose revenue for the region.
Globally, Chief Financial Officer Sarah Friar has said OpenAI’s annualised revenue exceeded $20 billion last year.
