A question that hit closer to home than intended.
I received an email recently with the subject line: “Who is running the world?”
It contained a list of prominent companies and political offices led by people of Indian origin, followed by the implied conclusion that “Indians” are now somehow in control of global power.
The sender wasn’t a stranger. He’s an old family friend—someone I’ve known for over 50 years. A veteran who served in the U.S. Army in Germany. My next-door neighbor during my high school years. That history matters, because this wasn’t anonymous trolling. It was personal enough to give me pause.
And perhaps that’s why it landed differently for me than it otherwise might have.
A Personal Note the List Didn’t Account For
I am Indian by birth and heritage.
I am not Indian by culture in the traditional sense. I don’t participate in most customs, don’t belong to any Indian community, and don’t view my identity through that lens. I grew up and built my life elsewhere. My worldview, professionally and personally, is shaped far more by engineering, economics, and curiosity than by ethnicity.
Still, when I read an email asking “Who is running the world?” and pointing squarely at Indians, it’s hard not to notice the subtext—especially when you’re someone trying to build something ambitious and visible.
Lists Like This Aren’t About Facts
They’re about discomfort.
Yes, there are some extraordinary individuals of Indian origin leading major companies. That’s true. But pulling together a short list and presenting it as evidence of dominance isn’t analysis—it’s narrative construction.
Let’s put some scale on this:
- There are over 10 million businesses in the United States.
- Of the Fortune 500, roughly 10 or so are led by CEOs of Indian origin.
- The remaining 490 are overwhelmingly led by white executives, mostly men.
That’s not a criticism. It’s just reality.
So the question isn’t why a few Indians are visible at the top.
The question is why visibility feels threatening.
The Global Context That’s Conveniently Ignored
Here’s the part these lists never include:
- India has a population of roughly 1.4 billion people.
- The average annual income in India is about $1,600–$1,700 per year.
- In contrast, the median household income in the United States is roughly $70,000, and the U.S. is home to over a thousand billionaires.
If anything, statistically speaking, the surprise isn’t that some Indians rise to global leadership—it’s that so few do.
What we’re seeing isn’t a takeover.
It’s extreme outlier success, filtered through education, immigration, and relentless competition.
When the Question Becomes the Tell
No one circulates lists asking, “Why are so many CEOs white?”
No one wonders “Who is running the world?” when power looks familiar.
Those questions only surface when the faces at the top change—and when some people quietly fear that opportunity is a zero-sum game.
It isn’t.
What This Is Really About
This isn’t about Indians.
And it isn’t really about race—until we make it about race.
It’s about how people react when success no longer maps neatly to their expectations of who is “supposed” to succeed.
I don’t aspire to rise above anyone. I’m trying to build something difficult, technical, and meaningful. If I succeed, it won’t be because of where I was born—but because of the people I work with, the risks taken, and the problems solved along the way.
The world isn’t being “run” by Indians, or anyone else.
It’s being built—unevenly, imperfectly—by those who show up prepared when opportunity appears.
That’s not something to fear.
A partial list of Indian leaders in western companies and politics:
1. Google’s CEO is an Indian.
2. Microsoft CEO is an Indian.
3. Adobe CEO is an Indian.
4. Net App CEO is an Indian.
5. MasterCard CEO is an Indian.
6. DBS CEO is an Indian.
7. Novartis CEO is an Indian.
8. Diageo CEO is an Indian.
9. SanDisk CEO is an Indian.
10. Harman CEO is an Indian.
11. Micron’s CEO is an Indian.
12. Palo Alto Networks CEO is an Indian.
13. Reckitt Benckiser CEO is an Indian.
14. IBM CEO is an Indian.
15. Britain’s Chancellor is an Indian.
16. Britain’s Home Secretary is an Indian.
17. Ireland’s Prime Minister is an Indian.
18. Suriname’s President is an Indian
19. Guyana’s President is an Indian.
20. The Mayor of London is an Indian
*And the American Vice President is Indian. So who’s running the World?*
Yes, there are some amazing companies run by Indians or rather, amazing Indians running some companies. But suggesting the world is being run by Indians just because 10 or 20 companies of the over 10 million businesses in the USA is rather offensive .
Of the Fortune 500 companies, 10 or so are led by Indians. Most of the other 490 are run almost entirely by whites, mostly men. I’m not complaining that they are run by whites or that there should be more diversity for diversity sake.
It is just that a few very successful Indians at these few companies are run by amazing group of people from an amazing country (no personal bias :).
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Income_in_India
https://www.census.gov/library/publications/2022/demo/p60-276.html
