Google ropes in former Apple executive Sreenivasa Reddy as India public policy head

Reddy’s appointment comes at a time when the Internet giant is facing multiple anti-trust challenges in India, while the government works on a broad set of tech regulations

Google has roped in former Samsung and Apple executive Sreenivasa Reddy to lead its public policy efforts in India at a time when the internet giant faces mounting anti-trust challenges and the government works on a broad set of tech regulations.

The appointment comes a full year after former public policy head, Archana Gulati, resigned just five months into the job.

Reddy wrote on LinkedIn on October 4 that he long admired Google’s commitment to innovation and its mission to organize the world’s information and make it universally accessible and useful.

“And this has been so evident in its journey in India. Be it making access to the internet affordable and easier through Android… or the millions of people that have been trained with digital skills — all focused on supporting India’s digital transformation and creating a sustainable and inclusive digital economy” Reddy wrote.

He said India was at a critical juncture in its digital journey and had huge potential to become a global leader in the digital economy with its young and growing population and rapid adoption of new technologies.

“However, there are also challenges to be addressed, be it an equitable digital transformation or protecting the privacy and security of our users or leveraging the talent in the market to have India be at the forefront of tech innovation,” Reddy said.

Before joining Google, Reddy was Microsoft’s head of XR (extended reality) regulatory affairs for the Asia Pacific, Middle East and Africa region for two years. He also served as the company’s senior director for mixed reality engineering (device and technology) function.

He was Apple’s head of regulatory affairs in India for nearly three and half years before heading Ericsson’s government and industry relations in the country for five years.

Michaela Browning, VP for Government Affairs and Public Policy, said India was at a turning point in its digital transformation. Its internet economy was expected to reach $1 trillion by 2030. With widespread digital adoption among many of its consumers and businesses alike, “India is a massively important source of innovation and learning for Google”, he said.

“This is also a place where there are some 100 million new internet users in the last few years alone. There is still so much potential for us to support greater access to the internet…and so much opportunity to work together to promote sustainable and inclusive growth” she said.