- Varun Vummadi alleges extortion attempt targeting AI startup Giga for $3M in cryptocurrency
- Extortionists threaten to release manipulated data and false claims if demands are unmet
- Former employees accuse Giga of unethical practices and toxic work environment
Varun Vummadi, the Indian-origin co-founder and CEO of the San Francisco-based AI startup Giga, has alleged that his company is being targeted by an extortion scheme. In a tweet on X, Vummadi shared that a small group of individuals has obtained confidential company information and is using it to extort $3 million in cryptocurrency. He also shared a screenshot of the email, which threatens to release manipulated data and false allegations unless the demand is met.
"They have already posted information on Twitter that is false and defamatory, and now they are threatening to take snippets of this data, manipulate it out of context, and release it to the public with wildly false and defamatory allegations unless we wire $3M to an anonymous crypto account," the tweet read.
Here is the tweet:
Former employees, including a former staffer named Jared Steele, have publicly accused Giga of various unethical practices, such as falsifying revenue numbers, bribing Fortune 500 companies, and mistreating employees. Steele, who was hired to lead demand generation, claimed the work environment was the "most toxic" he had experienced, citing a lack of work-life balance, mandatory 12-hour shifts daily, and promised compensation that did not materialise. He quit after just one day.
Vummadi denied all allegations of wrongdoing, characterising the claims as "wildly false and defamatory." He stated that the data is being manipulated out of context to harm the company following its successful $61 million Series A funding round in November 2025.
The company has reported the extortion attempt to law enforcement and has indicated its intent to pursue further legal action against the individuals involved. "This is extortion, and we have notified law enforcement. If they continue with their illegal conduct, we will take further appropriate legal action. Their emails sent from an anonymous Proton email account demonstrate their attempts to extort Giga," the company said in a statement.
Giga was founded in 2023 by IIT Kharagpur alumni Varun Vummadi and Esha Manideep and specialises in building voice-based AI agents for businesses. Interestingly, both founders prioritised their startup over lucrative offers - Esha turned down a $150,000 job, while Varun chose Giga over a Stanford PhD and a $525,000 quant trader role.
