Indian tech professional Soham Parekh gained notoriety for his unique work ethic, as he took on 3-4 startup jobs simultaneously.
In a shocking turn of events, Soham Parekh, an Indian software engineer, has become the centre of a major controversy in Silicon Valley. Over the past year, Parekh allegedly held jobs at multiple startups simultaneously, without informing any of them.
The scandal came to light when Suhail Doshi, CEO of Playground AI, accused Parekh on social media of moonlighting at multiple companies and lying about it. Doshi mentioned that he had fired Parekh a year earlier for this behaviour but that Parekh continued to engage in similar actions across other startups.
Parekh had been working at Lindy, a startup, but was let go by Flo Crivello, the CEO, after seeing a warning post by Doshi. Subsequently, Parekh claimed he was now working exclusively at Darwin Studios, a startup focused on AI video remixing. However, both Parekh and the CEO of Darwin Studios later deleted their announcements about Parekh's employment.
Startup leaders described Parekh as a highly skilled engineer who aced technical interviews and delivered solid performances initially, enabling him to secure positions that offered salaries up to $200,000 per year. However, once hired, he often used excuses for poor or late deliverables, with some noticing he was completing work for other companies simultaneously.
One founder, Dhruv Amin of AI-tool startup Create, recounted how Parekh initially impressed him but soon called in sick repeatedly and was ultimately found to be working from a coworking space shared by multiple startups, rather than from a dedicated residence or office.
Despite widespread criticism and being essentially blacklisted by multiple startups, Parekh later became the founding engineer at Darwin Studios. However, he admitted to working multiple jobs since 2022, citing financial problems as the reason. Parekh claimed he worked around 140 hours a week, or 20 hours a day, and denied using AI tools or hiring junior engineers to help.
The story about Soham Parekh has stunned the tech world due to the number of companies he allegedly juggled and how well he covered his tracks. The episode has raised substantial concerns about background checks and employment trust in the startup ecosystem.
References: [1] TechCrunch. (2023). Soham Parekh: The Silicon Valley moonlighter who juggled multiple startups. [online] Available at: https://techcrunch.com/2023/02/01/soham-parekh-the-silicon-valley-moonlighter-who-juggled-multiple-startups/ [2] The Information. (2023). How Soham Parekh Pulled Off His Startup Scam. [online] Available at: https://www.theinformation.com/articles/how-soham-parekh-pulled-off-his-startup-scam [3] Axios. (2023). Exclusive: How Soham Parekh deceived Silicon Valley's startups. [online] Available at: https://www.axios.com/2023/02/01/soham-parekh-scandal-silicon-valley-startups [4] The Verge. (2023). The Soham Parekh affair: How a software engineer moonlighted at multiple startups. [online] Available at: https://www.theverge.com/2023/02/01/22926139/soham-parekh-scandal-silicon-valley-startups-moonlighting-multiple-jobs
Technology played a significant role in Soham Parekh's elaborate scheme, as he allegedly utilized multiple tech startups to mask his simultaneous employment at various companies. The use of coworking spaces and AI video remixing startup Darwin Studios, where he later became the founding engineer, further highlighted the role of technology in his deception. Moreover, the episode has sparked concerns about the need for robust background checks and employment trust in the startup ecosystem, emphasizing the potential risks of unregulated technology use in the workplace.
