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‘I was blown away’: Sridhar Vembu on how AI supercharged an engineer’s productivity at Zoho

Sridhar Vembu noted that he was unaware that the engineer was developing the tool until it was demonstrated.

3 min readNew DelhiJan 8, 2026 05:39 PM IST

Sridhar Vembu admitted that the engineer had previously been sceptical of AI-generated code (X/ @svembu)

Zoho co-founder and Chief Scientist Sridhar Vembu highlighted a pivotal moment in software development, pointing to the productivity gains made possible by artificial intelligence (AI).

In an X post, Vembu shared how a senior engineer in the company’s R&D team independently built an advanced assembly and machine-code security tool in just one month, work that would traditionally require a team of three to four engineers working for at least a year.

He further noted that he was unaware that the engineer was developing the tool until it was demonstrated. “Yesterday, one of our experienced engineers who works in my R&D team showed me an assembly and machine code security tool he built in his spare time over the past month. I did not know he was building it. I was blown away by the depth and breadth of the tool,” Vembu wrote.

Vembu admitted that the engineer had previously been sceptical of AI-generated code. “This is how we learn in Zoho—we let smart people experiment and find new pathways,” Vembu added to his post.

He also shared about the strategic pressure this transformation places on Zoho’s leadership and research teams. “Anyway, powerful machine looms have arrived for software development (challenging the handloom weavers that we have been in software) and the implications are enormous. At Zoho, we have our work cut out, and as Chief Scientist, I am under pressure. Wish us luck,” Vembu concluded the post.

See here:

Yesterday one of our experienced engineers who works in my R&D team, showed me an assembly and machine code security tool he built in his spare time over the past month. I did not know he was building it. I was blown away by the depth and breadth of the tool.

He has developed…

— Sridhar Vembu (@svembu) January 8, 2026

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The post has since gone viral, sparking a conversation, with a user saying, “it’s impressive what talent can achieve outside of structured work hours.” Another user argued, “But sir we were developing our own AI model now we feel that US AI labs/chinese are too ahead.”

“This perfectly captures the AI inflection point in software development. Empowering curious minds to experiment is how real breakthroughs happen. Wishing you and the Zoho team the very best as you navigate this transformative phase,” a third user chimed in.