‘Technology Can Be Weaponised’: Sridhar Vembu Advocates Indian Control Over Digital Infrastructure

Zoho founder Sridhar Vembu, whose apps lika Arattai and Zoho Mail have recently been endorsed, highlighted the growing urgency to protect India’s data sovereignty and development of domestic technology champions. He drew parallels with China’s strategy of building its own “national champions”.

“Technology today can be weaponised against a country like India, and it has been demonstrated to us. That means the technology has to be…subject to Indian law so that within India, the Indian laws can apply,” said Vembu, as quoted by The Economic Times.

Vembu said Zoho’s made-in-India philosophy offers a strategic edge amid escalating global cyber tensions. He further stated the difference between self-sufficiency and self-reliance, stressing that genuine self-reliance lies in being able to “trade on equal terms with the world… we have to build it here”.

“Every nation today, whether it’s the USA, Japan, China, or Korea, they do push their national champions. That’s the reality,” he noted, while saying that China’s efforts to back its local technology giants present a valuable lesson, the report added.

He also argued that India needs its own world-class technology companies. “Whoever controls the technology….governments get in the picture today. That’s the fact of the world. Whether you like it or not, that’s a fact,” Vembu said, as quoted by ET.

His remarks came amid came at a time when the SaaS unicorn has been in the spotlight, with Union ministers such as home minister Amit Shah and IT minister Ashwini Vaishnaw publicly endorsing Zoho Mail and Arattai app. Following this, the app has seen a sharp increase in user adoption.

The company will officially launch Arattai with end-to-end encryption in November. Commerce & Industry Minister Piyush Goyal also publicly praised Arattai messaging app and encouraged its use, calling it a “Made in India” platform.

Several senior members of the Indian government also endorsed Zoho's suite of productivity and communication tools in recent weeks. The leaders have urged officials and citizens to adopt the home-grown platform as a “Swadeshi” alternative to foreign software.

The flurry of high-level endorsements culminated in a formal directive from the Ministry of Education asking its staff to use Zoho Office Suite for official documents, spreadsheets and presentations.

Vaishnaw had even stated that he was “moving to Zoho” and used Zoho Show for a Cabinet briefing presentation, calling on others to follow the prime minister’s call for Swadeshi tech.