Why Everyone In Silicon Valley Is Talking About Soham Parekh?

Soham Parekh, an Indian software engineer, has sparked widespread controversy online after being accused of simultaneously working at several Silicon Valley startups under false pretences. The incident has triggered widespread backlash across the tech community.

The controversy erupted when Suhail Doshi, CEO of image generation startup Playground AI, issued a warning on social media platform X, alleging Parekh had been "preying on YC companies" by working at 3-4 startups simultaneously. Following his post, several startup founders shared their similar experiences. Matt Parkhurst, CEO of Antimetal, disclosed that Parekh had been their first engineering hire in 2022 and had also been employed at other startups during the same period.

Founders cited Parekh's strong technical skills, polished resume, and impressive interview performance as key factors behind his multiple hirings. The deception was also uncovered by startup Reworkd, which discovered Parekh had lied about his location as the US while his IP link associated with Zoom located him in Mumbai.

Parekh acknowledged the allegations in an interview on the Technology Business Programming Network (TBPN) on Thursday. He admitted to working nearly 20 hours a day across companies without the use of AI or assistants, citing severe "financial jeopardy" as his motive. Despite the backlash, he is currently employed in a startup focused on AI video remixing.