Karan Bhatia leads the global public policy function at Google – a 450-person team based in more than 50 countries around the world. In this role, he serves as principal advisor to Google’s CEO, board and senior management on policy issues and leads the company’s work with policymakers and key political stakeholders in the US and around the world.
Before joining Google in 2018, Bhatia served as President of GE’s Government Affairs & Policyfunction. During his 10 years at GE, Karan helped drive the company’s significant expansioninto government-facing global markets. He supported more than $40 billion in government-related industrial orders globally, secured international regulatory approvals forcritical mergers and acquisitions, and led the company’s policy advocacy efforts on issues ranging from climate change to international trade.
Earlier in his career, Bhatia served in senior positions in the US Government, including at the Departments of Commerce and Transportation, shaping US international economic policy. His last role was as Deputy U.S. Trade Representative, overseeing U.S. international trade policy with respect to Asia and Africa. Prior to his government service, he was a partner in the Washington, D.C. law firm Wilmer, Cutler & Pickering, where he was a member of the firm’s international and corporate groups.
Bhatia has written and spoken widely on international economic policy, taught at Georgetown University Law Center, and testified on many occasions before Congress. He currently sits on the boards of the Urban Institute, the US Global Leadership Coalition, and the Partnership for Public Service.
Bhatia holds a bachelor’s degree from Princeton, a master’s from the London School of Economics, and a law degree from Columbia University. He and his wife Sara have two grown sons.