Archive · 26 Aug 2026
Sridhar Vembu Urges Entrepreneurs to Sell Amid AI Job Concerns
Sridhar Vembu says that building a good product is not enough to create a successful business.
Entrepreneurs also need to persuade customers to buy it.
He advises new founders to make many sales calls and learn from rejection.
Talking to customers can help them explain their ideas more clearly.
It can also teach them what customers really want.
Vembu is also worried that companies are spending more money on AI computers and servers instead of hiring people.
He says India needs many new jobs because millions of young people enter its workforce each year.
He is not sure that making software faster will create enough new demand to support those jobs.
Zoho founder Sridhar Vembu advised technical professionals entering business to spend more time selling.
He encouraged entrepreneurs to make repeated sales calls, accept rejection and learn from customer responses.
Vembu said selling helps founders communicate clearly and understand the work of professional sales teams.
He warned that companies are directing more investment toward AI infrastructure and computing capacity rather than hiring.
Vembu questioned whether faster software production will create enough new demand and technology jobs, particularly in India.
- Who
- Sridhar Vembu, founder of Zoho, and technical professionals moving into entrepreneurship.
- What
- Vembu advised aspiring entrepreneurs to focus on sales while raising concerns about AI investment, hiring and future technology employment.
- When
- He posted the sales advice on August 26 and discussed the AI employment issue earlier in the same month.
- Where
- The advice was shared on X; the employment concerns included implications for India.
- Why
- Vembu said selling is essential to every business, while AI-focused investment and a crowded software market may limit hiring growth.
- Adviser
- Sridhar Vembu, Zoho founder
- Main advice
- Entrepreneurs should make sales calls, handle rejection and keep trying.
- Reason for sales focus
- Customer conversations can improve communication and reveal how people respond to a product.
- AI investment trend
- Vembu said businesses are directing money toward AI infrastructure and computing capacity.
- Zoho staffing
- Vembu said Zoho has not carried out layoffs but has added relatively few employees in recent years.
- India workforce
- Millions of young people enter India’s workforce each year.
- Software market concern
- Vembu questioned whether producing software faster will create enough new demand in an already crowded global market.