Sridhar Vembu Calls AI a Bubble
Sridhar Vembu, the calm and composed figure donning a traditional attire of white mundu (veshti) with Zoho-coloured stripes and a blue shirt bearing the company’s logo, is a unique personality in the tech world. Currently working from Tenkasi, a significant spiritual place in South Tamil Nadu, Vembu has a vision that extends beyond the urban tech hubs.
During the Zoholics India conference held in Bengaluru, Vembu shared insights about his visits to Kottarakara in Kerala and his fondness for the unniyappam prasadam from the Ganapathi temple there. His vision revolves around taking opportunities to where the talent resides. As a social entrepreneur, Vembu is passionate about building capabilities and retaining talent in rural India.
Zoho, under Vembu’s leadership, has achieved significant milestones. It recently became the first bootstrapped company to cross 100 million users. With a history spanning over 25 years, Zoho has emerged as one of the leading B2B SaaS companies globally without any external funding. Despite the challenges posed by giants like Salesforce and Microsoft, Zoho has witnessed significant customer migrations from these platforms.
However, Vembu is not one to rest on past laurels. He is acutely aware of the uncertainties in the global economy and likens it to living in an earthquake zone. Despite building a resilient company, external factors can still pose challenges. Vembu’s recent tweet about the economy taking a downturn indicates his concerns about the SaaS market’s future. He anticipates a dip in stock valuations but remains optimistic about companies switching to affordable solutions like Zoho.
Addressing the AI Hype
Vembu doesn’t shy away from addressing the elephant in the room – the AI hype. Drawing parallels with other bubbles like crypto and SaaS, he believes that AI is also in a bubble phase. The initial excitement around AI has waned in recent months, and there are still business challenges to address. Vembu points out issues like ‘hallucinations’ in AI and the neural network’s tendency to memorize and regurgitate information as challenges that need resolution for commercial product use.
Consolidation in the SaaS Space
The SaaS domain is highly competitive, and Vembu believes that consolidation is the future. As VC funding becomes scarce, companies need to become profitable. Vembu opines that end customers wouldn’t want to deal with numerous vendors, making consolidation inevitable. He cites the example of Salesforce’s acquisition of Slack and believes that such high valuations might not be feasible in the current scenario.
Zoho’s Vision for its People
Vembu’s vision for Zoho extends beyond profits and growth. While he acknowledges the potential of AI in enhancing software development productivity, he is clear about not resorting to layoffs. Instead, Zoho plans to repurpose its employees towards customer, engineering, and other roles, ensuring that technology advancements don’t come at the cost of human resources.