Soham Parekh admits to moonlighting at US startups, blames hardship

While Parekh admitted that he was not proud of his actions and does not endorse them, he explained they were driven by necessity rather than greed

Indian techie Soham Parekh, who has been accused of scamming startups by at least five US CEOs by working multiple jobs simultaneously, has now admitted to the allegations, claiming he is “not proud of his actions”.

 

In an interview with TBPN on YouTube, Parekh admitted to misleading employers by working at multiple startups under false pretences. While he acknowledged that he did not endorse such actions, he explained that his decisions were not driven by greed but by financial necessity.

 

Elaborating further, he said he was in dire financial circumstances, stressing that “nobody likes to work 140 hours a week.”

 

Parekh also said, “I did what I had to do to get out of a tough situation.” While he took full responsibility, he emphasised that the experience was far from something he enjoyed or wanted.

 

Who is Soham Parekh? What has he been accused of?

 

Soham Parekh is an Indian techie who has been accused of working at multiple US companies at the same time. Parekh, who hails from Mumbai, holds a Bachelor's degree in Computer Engineering from the University of Mumbai, before he obtained a Master's degree in Computer Science from Georgia Tech (2022), according to FirstPost. 

 

Five CEOs accuse Parekh of moonlighting

 

The issue was first highlighted by Suhail Doshi, co-founder and former CEO of Mixpanel, who accused Parekh of moonlighting—working a second job in addition to his existing employment.

 

In a post on X, Doshi claimed that Parekh was briefly employed at his company, Playground AI, but was terminated due to “dishonest behaviour.” The termination followed a warning from Doshi against moonlighting, which he said Parekh ignored.

 

According to an NBC report, tech startup founder Marcus Lowe of Create shared a similar experience. He claimed that while Parekh outperformed most candidates and aced his interview, issues began on his first day of work.

 

Soham Parekh's response to allegations

 

In the interview, Parekh said that to manage multiple jobs, he is a “serial nonsleeper” and does not “do anything outside coding.” He also dismissed rumours that he had a team of junior engineers working under him or used artificial intelligence tools to secure more jobs. He said he began moonlighting in 2022, reiterating it was because of financial strain.

 

In a post on X, he wrote, “There’s a lot being said about me right now, and most of you don’t know the full story. If there’s one thing to know about me, it’s that I love to build. That’s it. 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.”   

Parekh now says he has signed a deal to work at “one company and one company only.”