Not too long ago, Madhu Gottumukkala, the Indian-origin appearing director of the US Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Safety Company (CISA), got here underneath fireplace after importing delicate authorities contracting paperwork into the AI mannequin ChatGPT. The paperwork have been marked “for official use solely” and weren’t meant for public launch. They weren’t categorized, however the incident triggered inner safety alerts, which led to a evaluate by the Division of Homeland Safety (DHS).
Following this information, a self-described ‘Christian nationalist’ and MAGA-supporting X consumer responded with a submit blaming Indians in tech for incompetence. He mentioned that whereas working in a tech firm, “every thing is P1 pressing precedence” is typical Indian habits.Based on him, Indian colleagues would demand duties be prioritized instantly, with out offering info or causes, and would use threats and yelling to get their approach. He linked this habits to elucidate Gottumukkala’s actions, which have been thought of xenophobic and generalizing by social media customers.In response, a US-based software program engineer pushed again towards these stereotypes and defended Indians. He took the instance of his personal expertise working with Indian colleagues. His crew lead, his boss, and their CTO are all Indian, and they’re competent, skilled, and straightforward to work with, he mentioned. He was named John Freeman and in addition mentioned he has by no means encountered any Indian employee appearing just like the habits described within the MAGA consumer’s submit. Freeman mentioned that competence is just not decided by nationality and recommended that if somebody retains operating into incompetent colleagues, the issue is probably going with hiring decisions at that particular firm, not with a whole nationality.
Let’s speak about Indian competence. My crew lead is Indian. My boss is Indian. His boss, who employed each of us, is Indian. His boss, the CTO, is Indian. They’re all fairly sharp! They know this enterprise in and out. They work effectively with others. Everyone seems to be tremendous pleasant. They… https://t.co/CjyrH60BXl
— John Freeman (@thejohnfreeman) January 31, 2026










