American claims all AI companies were found by white men. Desi CEO schools him with emojis
H-1B visa reforms, a controversial remark about Indians and artificial intelligence has drawn widespread attention, particularly catching the eye of Aravind Srinivas, cofounder of Perplexity AI.
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The comment claimed that all noteworthy AI companies are founded by “white Europeans” and dismissed Indians as merely capable of managing AI companies, not starting them. This provocative statement quickly went viral on X, sparking backlash and being flagged as “factually incorrect” through community notes.
The rebuttal highlighted key examples, mentioning that Aravind Srinivas, an Indian, cofounded Perplexity AI, a company valued at over $8 billion with more than 15 million users. It also referenced Dr. Shiv Rao, an Indian-American who founded Abridge, a healthcare AI firm valued at $2.5 billion and serving over 10,000 clinicians.
Aravind Srinivas’ reaction to this claim was succinct yet impactful. He reshared the post and used a single “Face with Monocle” emoji to convey his response. This emoticon, according to Emojipedia, represents someone pondering, questioning, or skeptically observing something, often with an ironic undertone. Srinivas’ reaction encouraged viewers to critically examine the baseless assertion.
Perplexity AI, which Srinivas cofounded in 2022 alongside Johnny Ho, Denis Yarats, and Andy Konwinski, has quickly
