Bengaluru: US-based artificial intelligence research company Anthropic, co-founded by Dario Amodei, is set to open its first Indian office in Bengaluru in early 2026 as it looks to expand its global footprint amid growing competition from OpenAI, Google, Microsoft, and Meta.
The move underscores India’s rising prominence in the global AI ecosystem, with Anthropic’s expansion coming just weeks after OpenAI announced plans for its own India office in New Delhi later this year.
Amodei’s India visit
Anthropic co-founder and CEO Dario Amodei is currently visiting India to reinforce the company’s commitment to building responsible AI systems that promote both social and economic progress. According to sources cited by Moneycontrol, Amodei is expected to meet Prime Minister Narendra Modi to discuss future collaborations and investment opportunities.
During his visit, Amodei is also scheduled to engage with leaders of top Indian IT firms, including Infosys, to explore partnerships focused on developing scalable AI solutions tailored to India’s needs.
Bengaluru chosen for its innovation ecosystem
Bengaluru will serve as Anthropic’s second office in the Indo-Pacific region, after Tokyo. The company cited the city’s strong talent pool, vibrant startup ecosystem, and proximity to major enterprises as key reasons for selecting the tech hub.
“Our expansion comes at a pivotal moment when Indian enterprises and startups are seeking AI models they can trust,” said Paul Smith, Chief Commercial Officer at Anthropic. “We see remarkable promise in India’s innovation ecosystem, where developers and enterprises are building solutions that impact millions of lives globally.”
Local AI initiatives and Indic language support
Anthropic said it plans to hire a dedicated India team to develop AI tools and models designed for the country’s diverse linguistic and social landscape. A major focus will be on enhancing the Indic language capabilities of its flagship AI assistant, Claude, which already supports multiple Indian languages.
The company plans to expand Claude’s performance in Hindi and train models across nearly a dozen languages, including Bengali, Marathi, Telugu, Tamil, Punjabi, Gujarati, Kannada, Malayalam, and Urdu.
This aligns with Anthropic’s broader vision of promoting AI inclusion by ensuring technology reaches users beyond English-speaking demographics, enabling access for millions across rural and semi-urban India.
India’s strategic importance
Amodei said India represents a natural partner in Anthropic’s mission to build AI that benefits all. “There is deep alignment between the challenges India is tackling and our mission as a company — from deploying AI across diverse languages to creating frameworks for responsible governance,” he said.
Anthropic’s Claude AI assistant already sees strong traction in India — the country ranks as Claude’s largest market outside the US, accounting for 7.2% of global usage. Much of this activity comes from software developers and technical professionals, who use Claude for UI design, web app debugging, and coding assistance.
Driving social impact and education
The company’s Beneficial Deployments team will partner with government bodies and nonprofits to integrate AI into key public initiatives. These include AI-powered education tools, data-driven public health projects, and collaborations with social entrepreneurs to tackle issues in agriculture, healthcare, and skill development.
“India’s AI ecosystem will play a central role in how AI develops globally and democratically,” Amodei said. “We’re looking forward to working with organisations in India to pave a path for beneficial AI at scale.”
Anthropic’s rapid global expansion
Founded in 2021 by former OpenAI researchers, Anthropic has emerged as one of the world’s leading AI startups. The company recently announced plans to triple its international workforce and expand its applied AI team fivefold to meet surging demand for its Claude models.
Its global customer base has grown from fewer than 1,000 in 2023 to over 300,000 businesses today, while annual run-rate revenue skyrocketed from $87 million in early 2024 to over $5 billion by mid-2025.
Backed by major investors such as Amazon, Google, and Salesforce, Anthropic recently raised $13 billion at a $183 billion valuation, making it one of the most valuable AI startups globally.
Access for Indian users
Indian users can access Claude models through the Anthropic API, Amazon Bedrock, and Google Cloud Vertex AI. Developers can also use Claude Code, an AI-driven terminal tool designed to enhance productivity through natural language commands.
Among Anthropic’s Indian partners is Emergent, an AI coding platform that integrates Claude to help users create production-ready web and mobile applications.
Conclusion
With its Bengaluru expansion, Anthropic aims to position India as a core hub for responsible AI development, combining local innovation, government partnerships, and social impact to shape the next phase of global AI growth.