Zoho Corporation co-founder Sridhar Vembu has issued a strong warning to India's technology sector, declaring that “globalisation is dead” and arguing that advanced technology has become a key instrument of national sovereignty rather than a universally accessible resource.
Vembu's remarks came after the US-based artificial intelligence company Anthropic restricted access to its advanced Fable 5 and Mythos 5 AI models for users outside the United States, following a government directive. The move has sparked concerns among industry leaders about the risks of relying heavily on foreign technology infrastructure.
Describing the development as a “wake-up call” for Indian businesses and policymakers, Vembu said companies can no longer assume uninterrupted access to critical technologies developed abroad. He warned that global technology markets are becoming increasingly fragmented. “Technology is the ultimate weapon. National sovereignty, national security, all of it is now about technology. Globalisation is dead and Bharat must find her own way ahead.”
According to Vembu, the incident highlights a broader shift towards technological nationalism, where governments are placing tighter controls on cutting-edge innovations. He argued that international interdependence in critical technologies can disappear overnight, leaving businesses vulnerable to sudden policy changes.
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“The latest models cost not only huge GPU budgets to train, the GPUs themselves are restricted,” Vembu explained. “So we can't afford the scale of money—of the order of $100+ billion—to even get in the game—and even if we could come up with the money, we can't get all the GPUs,” he added.
This is big: all access to Mythos and Fable AI models disabled for everyone outside America.
— Sridhar Vembu (@svembu) June 13, 2026
First thoughts:
1. Technology is the ultimate weapon. National sovereignty, national security, all of it is now about technology.
2. Globalization is dead and Bharat must find her… https://t.co/kCQpq93D3r
To address these challenges, Vembu urged India to accelerate investments in domestic artificial intelligence capabilities, indigenous technology platforms, and open-source alternatives. He suggested that Indian organisations should focus on developing and optimising smaller, efficient open-source AI models rather than relying solely on expensive foreign systems. “I would not like to ask the government to fund tens of billions of dollars on this anyway—the money has far better uses.”
ALSO READ: 'We Are Way Behind': Mohandas Pai Urges PM Modi To Launch National AI Mission Amid Anthropic Curbs
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