OpenAI names former xAI executive head of infrastructure and compute
What's the story
OpenAI has announced the appointment of Uday Ruddarraju, a former xAI executive, as the new head of its infrastructure and compute businesses. The move is part of a broader leadership reshuffle within the company, aimed at bolstering its data center capacity. Ruddarraju originally joined OpenAI in July 2025 and was subsequently promoted to Chief Technology Officer for Compute in July this year.
Leadership change
Katti to step down after completing transition
Sachin Katti, the current head of the infrastructure unit, will be transitioning out of his role in the coming weeks. He intends to continue as an adviser after that.
Katti has been instrumental in several major data center projects during his year-long tenure at OpenAI, including an 8-gigawatt project in Ohio with SB Energy and NVIDIA, and Georgia's first OpenAI-designed site.
Transition outlook
Ruddarraju optimistic about leadership transition
Ruddarraju is optimistic about a seamless leadership transition, given his previous experience with the engineering, construction, and technical aspects of the infrastructure group.
He has also collaborated with leaders at OpenAI's partners such as NVIDIA CEO Jensen Huang.
The strategy and business leaders under Katti will also continue in their roles, ensuring stability during this transition period.
Future plans
Ruddarraju to focus more on commercial partnerships
Ruddarraju intends to focus more on the commercial side of things, acknowledging Katti's impressive work in maintaining these partnerships.
He said, "Sachin has done an incredible job maintaining the commercial partnerships."
This shift indicates a strategic move by OpenAI to further strengthen its business relationships as it continues to expand its infrastructure and compute operations under Ruddarraju's leadership.