Latest news with #LeapingAI
Mint
a day ago
- Business
- Mint
Soham Parekh used India-Pak conflict to delay work, lied about ‘drone strike,' says ex boss
Soham Parekh, an Indian tech professional accused of secretly working for several US-based startups at the same time, has been accused of emotionally manipulating his former boss by using the India-Pakistan conflict as an excuse. Arkadiy Telegin, co-founder of Leaping AI, made these claims in a recent post on X. According to Telegin, Parekh falsely claimed that he was living close to a conflict zone in Mumbai during the tensions between India and Pakistan in May. He alleged that Parekh messaged him saying, "They shot a drone in the air near my house 10 mins away," to explain delays in work. Telegin further claimed that Parekh lied and guilt-trip him for being slow with coding tasks, saying, "Soham used to guilt-trip me for being slow on PRs when the India-Pakistan thing was going on, all while he was in Mumbai." He jokingly added, "The next person should hire him for the Chief Intelligence Officer role." Telegin also shared screenshots of their chats to support his claims. The messages were likely exchanged during a tense period of military action between India and Pakistan, following Operation Sindoor. The operation came in response to the terror attack in Pahalgam, Jammu and Kashmir, where 26 persons lost their lives on April 22. Later, Parekh reached out to Telegin to apologise for the "trouble" he had caused. Sharing a screenshot of this apology, Telegin captioned it, "Soham character arc that I hoped to see." In a separate post on X, Suhail Doshi, former CEO of Mixpanel, accused Parekh of juggling multiple jobs at once. Doshi claimed that Parekh had been working with "34 startups at the same time" and accused him of faking his CV to secure these jobs. He said that Parekh was fired within a week of being hired but allegedly continued to deceive other startups. Warning others in the startup community, Doshi wrote, "PSA: there's a guy named Soham Parekh (in India) who works at 3-4 startups at the same time. He's been preying on YC companies and more. Beware," adding, "He hasn't stopped a year later. No more excuses." Responding to the controversy, Parekh admitted his actions and said, "I'm not proud of what I've done. But, you know, financial circumstances, essentially. No one really likes to work 140 hours a week, right? But I had to do this out of necessity. I was in extremely dire financial circumstances." He also said that he completed the work himself, without using AI tools or help from other engineers. Despite the backlash, Parekh has now joined a new AI startup called Darwin, based in San Francisco. He said he will no longer be taking on multiple jobs. Darwin's CEO and founder, Sanjit Juneja, defended the hiring, saying, "Soham is an incredibly talented engineer, and we believe in his abilities to help bring our products to market."
Mint
a day ago
- Business
- Mint
Soham Parekh used India-Pak conflict to delay work, lied about 'drone strike' near Mumbai home amid moonlighting row
Soham Parekh, an Indian tech professional accused of secretly working for several US-based startups at the same time, has been accused of emotionally manipulating his former boss by using the India-Pakistan conflict as an excuse. Arkadiy Telegin, co-founder of Leaping AI, made these claims in a recent post on X. According to Telegin, Parekh falsely claimed that he was living close to a conflict zone in Mumbai during the tensions between India and Pakistan in May. He alleged that Parekh messaged him saying, "They shot a drone in the air near my house 10 mins away," to explain delays in work. Telegin further claimed that Parekh blamed him for being slow with coding tasks, saying, "Soham used to guilt-trip me for being slow on PRs when the India-Pakistan thing was going on, all while he was in Mumbai." He jokingly added, "The next person should hire him for the Chief Intelligence Officer role." Telegin also shared screenshots of their chats to support his claims. The messages were exchanged during a tense period of military action between India and Pakistan, following Operation Sindoor. The operation came in response to the terror attack in Pahalgam, Jammu and Kashmir, where 26 civilians lost their lives on April 22. Later, Parekh reached out to Telegin to apologise for the "trouble" he had caused. Sharing a screenshot of this apology, Telegin captioned it, "Soham character arc that I hoped to see." In a separate post on X, Suhail Doshi, former CEO of Mixpanel, accused Parekh of juggling multiple jobs at once. Doshi claimed that Parekh had been working with "34 startups at the same time" and accused him of faking his CV to secure these jobs. He said that Parekh was fired within a week of being hired but allegedly continued to deceive other startups. Warning others in the startup community, Doshi wrote, "PSA: there's a guy named Soham Parekh (in India) who works at 3-4 startups at the same time. He's been preying on YC companies and more. Beware," adding, "He hasn't stopped a year later. No more excuses." Responding to the controversy, Parekh admitted his actions and said, "I'm not proud of what I've done. But, you know, financial circumstances, essentially. No one really likes to work 140 hours a week, right? But I had to do this out of necessity. I was in extremely dire financial circumstances." He also said that he completed the work himself, without using AI tools or help from other engineers. Despite the backlash, Parekh has now joined a new AI startup called Darwin, based in San Francisco. He said he will no longer be taking on multiple jobs. Darwin's CEO and founder, Sanjit Juneja, defended the hiring, saying, "Soham is an incredibly talented engineer, and we believe in his abilities to help bring our products to market." On June 3, Parekh posted on X, reflecting on the fallout from the controversy. "I've been isolated, written off and shut out by nearly everyone I've known and every company I've worked at. But building is the only thing I've ever truly known, and it's what I'll keep doing," he wrote.
NDTV
a day ago
- Business
- NDTV
Soham Parekh Lied About Drone Strike During Op Sindoor To Guilt Trip Ex-Boss
Soham Parekh, the Indian tech professional accused of moonlighting at multiple US-based startups, emotionally manipulated his ex-boss - Leaping AI co-founder, Arkadiy Telegin, by citing the India-Pakistan conflict in May, Telegin asserted. Parekh's ex-boss made the claim on X, just days after the techie admitted to working at multiple startups without disclosing. Telegin further said that Parekh pretended to be near a conflict area saying, "They shot a drone in the air near my house 10 mins away", despite living in Mumbai. Telegin also alleged that the techie "guilt-tripped" him for taking too long to get work done. When Telegin asked if he was safe, Parekh said that a building near his house was damaged because of the strike. "Soham used to guilt-trip me for being slow on PRs (a step in coding carried out by a coder) when the India-Pakistan thing was going on, all while he was in Mumbai. The next person should hire him for the Chief Intelligence Officer role," Telegin wrote in a post on X. He also attached screenshots of the chats with Parekh on X. Soham also used to guilt trip me for his being slow on PRs when India Pakistan thing was going on, all while he was in Mumbai. Next person should hire him for the Chief Intelligence Officer role. — Arkadiy Telegin (@akyshnik) July 2, 2025 The chats took place in the backdrop of an intense military stand-off between India and Pakistan after the former launched Operation Sindoor. The strikes followed the April 22 terror attack in Jammu and Kashmir's Pahalgam, where 26 civilians were killed. Parekh later reached out to Telegin apologising for the "trouble" he had caused. Soham character arc that I hoped to see, Telegin captioned the screenshot that he posted on X. Soham character arc that I hoped to see — Arkadiy Telegin (@akyshnik) July 4, 2025 In a revelation, Suhail Doshi, former CEO of Mixpanel, posted on X that Parekh had been working with "34 startups at the same time". Doshi accused Parekh of scamming startups by working multiple jobs at one time and faking his resume. Doshi fired Parekh within a week of hiring him and warned others about his behaviour, but Parekh allegedly continued working for other startups. "PSA: there's a guy named Soham Parekh (in India) who works at 3-4 startups at the same time. He's been preying on YC companies and more. Beware," Doshi had said. "He hasn't stopped a year later. No more excuses." Parekh has responded to the allegations by saying, "I'm not proud of what I've done. But, you know, financial circumstances, essentially. No one really likes to work 140 hours a week, right? But I had to do this out of necessity. I was in extremely dire financial circumstances". He also added that he did all the work without the assistance of AI or other engineers. Parekh has also announced that he has taken up a job at an AI firm, Darwin, a new startup based in San Francisco in the United States. He also clarified that he will not be taking up any more additional jobs. Sanjit Juneja, Darwin's CEO and founder reinforced his support towards Parekh and said, "Soham is an incredibly talented engineer, and we believe in his abilities to help bring our products to market." On June 3rd, he posted on X, "I've been isolated, written off and shut out by nearly everyone I've known and every company I've worked at. But building is the only thing I've ever truly known, and it's what I'll keep doing."
News18
a day ago
- Business
- News18
‘Drone Strike Near My Home': Indian Techie Lied During Op Sindoor To Skip Work, Says Ex-Boss
Soham Parekh allegedly manipulated his US employer by falsely claiming to be in a war zone during the India-Pakistan military standoff. Soham Parekh, the Indian tech professional embroiled in a massive moonlighting scandal involving over 30 startups, is now facing fresh allegations- this time of lying about being in a conflict zone during Operation Sindoor in order to avoid work. Arkadiy Telegin, co-founder of the US-based AI startup Leaping AI, claimed on social media platform X (formerly Twitter) that Soham Parekh emotionally manipulated him in May by pretending to be under threat during the cross-border escalation. According to Arkadiy Telegin, Soham Parekh falsely claimed that a drone had struck near his home in Mumbai. 'Soham used to guilt-trip me for being slow on PRs when the India-Pakistan thing was going on, all while he was in Mumbai," Arkadiy Telegin posted, sharing screenshots of their chat. In one message, Soham Parekh wrote, 'Drone shot down 10 minutes away", later adding that a nearby building was damaged- a claim now believed to be entirely fabricated. Arkadiy Telegin accused Soham Parekh of using the situation to stall work and deflect accountability, calling the incident 'manipulative and dishonest." He added sarcastically, 'The next person should hire him for the Chief Intelligence Officer role." The latest revelation follows an industry-wide uproar over Soham Parekh's admission that he was simultaneously employed by 34 different startups, many of them backed by leading accelerator Y Combinator. Suhail Doshi, former CEO of Mixpanel, was among the first to flag the issue, revealing that he terminated Soham Parekh within a week of hiring him. Other startup founders soon followed with similar experiences. One halted Soham Parekh's trial period after seeing Suhail Doshi's post while another said they discovered his overlapping employment only after conducting their own background check. Soham Parekh Admits To Deception Soham Parekh admitted to working multiple jobs without disclosure, saying, 'It is true. I'm not proud of what I've done. But I had to do this out of necessity. I was in extremely dire financial circumstances." He claimed to have handled all assigned work himself without outsourcing or relying on AI tools and said he worked up to 140 hours a week. Soham Parekh Now Hired By AI Startup Darwin Despite the controversy, Soham Parekh landed a new job with Darwin, a San Francisco-based AI startup. Darwin's CEO, Sanjit Juneja, expressed support for the hire, saying, 'Soham is an incredibly talented engineer, and we believe in his abilities to help bring our products to market." Soham Parekh confirmed that he has ended all other engagements and signed an exclusive agreement with Darwin. In a post, he wrote, 'I've been isolated, written off and shut out by nearly everyone I've known and every company I've worked at. But building is the only thing I've ever truly known, and it's what I'll keep doing."
News18
a day ago
- Business
- News18
After Moonlighting, Techie Soham Parekh Accused Of Manipulating CEOs With Operation Sindoor
Last Updated: The businessman shared a screenshot of a conversation he had with Soham Parekh during the events of Operation Sindoor. Soham Parekh, the Indian techie accused of moonlighting for several companies, has been at the centre of a controversy. With many companies coming forward with their own experience of getting scammed by Parekh, another American co-founder has shared a concerning incident involving the techie. The latest case involves allegations of manipulating his employers emotionally in the name of Operation Sindoor. Leaping AI founder Arkadiy Telegin added more to the discussion on X by sharing an anecdote from the time of Operation Sindoor. Calling it an India-Pakistan thing, he also shared a screenshot of a conversation with an individual appearing to be Soham Parekh. 'Soham also used to guilt-trip me for his being slow on PRs when the India-Pakistan thing was going on, all while he was in Mumbai. Next person should hire him for the Chief Intelligence Officer role," the CTO wrote in the post. The conversation shows Soham speaking about a drone attack near his house, further adding that he has been told to stay at home. Telegin explained, 'Context here is that Mumbai was nowhere near the conflict, being 1000km+ away from Jammu & Kashmir." Carried out by the Indian Armed Forces, Operation Sindoor was a calibrated military operation in response to the terrorist attack in Pahalgam. The forces targeted terrorist sites and camps through airstrikes and missiles. At the time of the operation, while states bordering Pakistan like Jammu and Kashmir, Punjab, Rajasthan, and Uttar Pradesh were on high alert, Maharashtra had no major reports of airstrikes or attacks as claimed in the text messages. The post instantly reignited online criticism towards Parekh, with many calling out his repeated instances of scamming employees. One wrote, 'This guy single-handedly destroyed the reputation of remote work for devs while adding fuel to the fire on racism against India," while another added, 'Oh my God! On the one hand, it's funny ngl, but on the other hand, once you abuse the trust in a high-trust society, there's going to be consequences. Soham himself may get away as he looks to be a pretty cracked dev, but the consequences could be on others…sigh." Another comment read, 'What a way to tarnish the image of the hard-working population of India." Amid the intense backlash against Soham, the techie has publicly admitted to working at multiple companies at the same time, citing his financial distress. First Published:
