New Delhi: Over the past year, the deep tech startup Saarthi.ai has faced significant challenges, failing to pay overdue salaries to both former and current employees and reducing its workforce by over 70%.
Entrackr reports that Saarthi.ai’s staff has shrunk from 140 to 40 since March 2023, leaving many employees without their salaries. The company has also failed to deposit tax deducted at source (TDS) with the government for the last two fiscal years.
A report in July 2023 shed light on the layoffs and outstanding payments, though details were scant. CEO Vishwa Nath Jha promised that all pending salaries would be settled within three months.
An anonymous former employee claimed that the company has not paid salaries to over 50 employees for more than a year and has ignored legal notices. The founder, reportedly unresponsive, has stated he owes no explanations.
In response to accusations of intentionally delaying salaries, Jha refuted the allegations, implying they were attempts to slander the company. He outlined plans to recruit for key roles as the company seeks agreements with various banks and NBFCs.
Jha also claimed that a former senior employee had stolen his passport containing a US visa, which impeded his fundraising efforts. Although he has obtained a new passport, he is awaiting a new US visa. Jha acknowledged that the startup is not generating a sufficient surplus to settle longstanding debts and conceded that Saarthi.ai has not deposited TDS for the past two years.
He stressed that the company has maintained transparency with affected former employees and is striving to achieve positive cash flow by the second quarter of 2024. Saarthi.ai is currently negotiating with investors to secure new funding to resolve its debts and liabilities.
Established in 2017 by Jha, Sameer Sinhaa, and Sangram Sabat, Saarthi.ai develops conversational AI for under-resourced and major world languages, including Indic, South Asian, Arabic, and European languages.