Business: Several Indian Americans On Fortune’s 100 Most Powerful

India-West News Desk

NEW YORK, NY – Several Indian Americans are among Fortune’s inaugural ‘100 Most Powerful People in Business,’ a list recognizing founders, CEOs, disruptors, and innovators across 40 industries. Each of these individuals, according to Fortune, possesses a key trait: Their words, deeds, and wealth shape what others around them think and do. The list includes:

• Satya Nadella: He is on the list for “successfully leading Microsoft through not one but two major transformations in his decade at the helm of the world’s largest software company, from PCs to the cloud, and now to AI.”  Microsoft has seen significant success across multiple products, and he continues to expand the company’s internal AI capabilities while investing in startups working on driverless cars and quantum computing, under his leadership, the magazine noted about Microsoft’s CEO and chairman.
• Sundar Pichai: As CEO of Alphabet, Pichai helms one of the world’s most powerful tech conglomerates, with best-of-breed businesses such as Google, YouTube, Android, and Waymo self-driving cars under its flag, along with a market cap in excess of $2 trillion even as there are ongoing challenges, as antitrust regulators are itching to break up the company, while the rise of generative AI could impact the search advertising business that drives much of Alphabet’s profit.
• Shantanu Narayen: Fortune said Adobe’s CEO has leaned heavily into artificial intelligence, adding over 100 new AI features to Adobe’s creative cloud suite this year. Narayen’s tenure has been marked by growth, with Adobe’s annual revenue rising from $3 billion when he began to over $19 billion last year. Upcoming video features may introduce new pricing tiers, building on the creative tools included in standard subscriptions.
• Neal Mohan: Appointed CEO of YouTube in 2023, Mohan has focused on expanding YouTube Shorts, YouTube’s short-form video feature that competes with TikTok and Instagram Reels, by adding AI enhancements and new revenue-sharing options for creators. Under his leadership, YouTube Music and Premium subscriptions have exceeded 100 million users, and YouTube TV has surpassed 8 million paid subscribers.
• Vinod Khosla: Recognized as one of Silicon Valley’s most influential investors, Khosla co-founded Sun Microsystems in 1982 and later became known for strategic investments in fiber-optic and internet companies during his tenure at Kleiner Perkins. In 2004, he founded Khosla Ventures, which has backed startups in healthcare, sustainability, and AI. His firm notably invested $50 million in OpenAI in 2019, and he was among the first to call for Sam Altman’s rehiring as OpenAI CEO after his brief ouster in late 2023. Khosla has also drawn attention for predicting that AI will replace most jobs.
• Tarang Amin: CEO of e.l.f. Beauty, Amin has led the company to remarkable success with 22 consecutive quarters of sales growth. Known for selling affordably priced eye palettes and lip glosses under the simple “eyes, lips, face” brand, e.l.f. Beauty generated over $1 billion in revenue in fiscal 2024—a 77% increase from the previous year. The company also acquired the skincare brand Naturium in 2023 for $355 million.
• Mukesh Ambani: Also listed is Ambani, chairman and managing director of India’s Reliance Industries, and as of early November, Asia’s richest person with an estimated net worth of around $100 billion. Reliance spans sectors from petrochemicals to telecommunications, retail, and entertainment. Ambani is preparing his children to lead the conglomerate’s next phase: his son Akash chairs Reliance Jio, the telecom arm, while his daughter Isha is driving retail growth.