Analysis · Enterprise Software & IT

Zoho co-founder urges Indian diaspora to return home

By Startup Enthusiast · 27 April 2026

What they do

Zoho is a software and cloud services company based in India

Co-founder Sridhar Vembu wrote an open letter asking Indians in America to return and help build India's future

He warned that some Americans see Indians as taking jobs and that India needs experienced talent, not just capital

Sridhar Vembu, co-founder of Zoho, wrote an open letter to Indians living in America and posted it on X on 27 April 2026.
The letter urges the Indian diaspora to return to India and help build the country's future.
Vembu said India needs experienced talent, not just capital.
He recalled that Indian immigrants arrived in America with no money but good education and cultural heritage, and built successful lives.
Vembu said America was good to Indians and that gratitude is the Bharatiya way.
He warned that a growing section of Americans believes Indians take away American jobs, and this sentiment cannot be ignored.
Vembu urged Indians not to rely on electoral shifts, describing an ideological conflict between the hard right and woke left, both hostile to Indian civilizational identity.
He argued that national technological strength, not Western moral or political approval, will shape India's standing.

Vembu said if India remains poor, the woke left gives moral lectures with pity and the hard right gives different moral lectures with scorn.
He said respect comes from technological prowess, and India produces enough brainpower but exported too much talent to America.
Vembu wrote that 'our civilisational strength will assert itself' as India develops capability at home.
He appealed 'please come back home', saying the vast youthful population needs technology leadership from the diaspora to guide towards prosperity with missionary zeal.

Zoho is a software and cloud services company based in India.
It offers a wide range of business applications, including CRM, email, office suite, and IT management tools.
The company serves millions of customers globally, from small businesses to large enterprises.
Zoho is privately held and profitable, with a strong focus on R&D and product development.