New Delhi/Washington: An Indian software engineer, Soham Parekh, has sparked a major controversy in the American tech startup ecosystem after multiple founders accused him of moonlighting — simultaneously working for several companies under false pretenses.
The storm began when Suhail Doshi, co-founder of Playground AI and former CEO of analytics platform Mixpanel, took to social media platform X (formerly Twitter) to issue a public warning against Parekh. Doshi claimed that Parekh had been scamming early-stage startups by accepting full-time roles at multiple firms, concealing his commitments from each employer.
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.
I fired this guy in his first week and told him to stop lying / scamming people. He hasn’t stopped a year later. No more excuses.
— Suhail (@Suhail) July 2, 2025
“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 posted, saying he had fired Parekh during his first week at Playground AI for lying about his employment status.
Since the post, several other founders from US-based startups have stepped forward, alleging similar experiences.
Flo Crivello of Lindy AI stated they had hired Parekh only a week ago and were forced to terminate his employment immediately upon learning of his alleged multiple job commitments. “He did incredibly well in interviews but was juggling several jobs. It’s incredibly disappointing,” Crivello said.
Matthew Parkhurst of Antimetal, another startup allegedly affected, echoed the sentiment, describing Parekh as “smart and likeable,” but also dishonest. At least five other startups, including Fleet AI and Mosaic, are reported to have cut ties with Parekh after realizing the extent of the overlap.
The fallout has prompted an informal audit of Parekh’s résumé, which reportedly includes exaggerated and unverifiable stints at companies such as Dynamo AI, Synthesia, Alan AI, GitHub, and Union AI. Several of the links in his portfolio are said to be broken or fabricated.
While moonlighting — or holding multiple jobs — has been a topic of debate in remote work culture, the crux of the accusations against Parekh lies in alleged deception and intentional misrepresentation. Startups, particularly in the high-pressure early funding stages, depend heavily on a small team, often placing immense trust in each member. Founders argue that such breaches can derail operations and stall growth.
The incident has stirred sharp reactions on social media. While many condemned Parekh for breaching ethical and professional norms, a few others questioned whether the issue stemmed from poor vetting practices in a fast-paced startup environment.
According to his public LinkedIn profile and CV, Parekh holds an undergraduate degree in computer engineering from the University of Mumbai and a master’s degree from the Georgia Institute of Technology. However, even these claims are now under scrutiny, as founders question the legitimacy of his academic and work credentials.
In what appears to be a private message exchange, Parekh reportedly acknowledged the damage, asking one of the founders whether he had “completely sabotaged his career,” and expressing a willingness to “come clean.” He has yet to issue any public statement on the matter.
