Automation Anywhere vs Zoho: Founders, CEOs and History
Automation Anywhere was founded in 2003 by Mihir Shukla, Ankur Kothari, Neeti Mehta Shukla and is led by Mihir Shukla. Zoho was founded in 1996 by Sridhar Vembu, Tony Thomas and is led by Shailesh Kumar Davey.
Company facts
Automation Anywhere
- Founded
- 2003
- Headquarters
- San Jose, California, United States
- Current CEO
- Mihir Shukla
- Employees
- 2,400
Zoho
- Founded
- 1996
- Headquarters
- Chennai, Tamil Nadu, India (US operations in Austin, Texas)
- Current CEO
- Shailesh Kumar Davey
- Employees
- 19,000
Founders
Automation Anywhere
Mihir Shukla
Mihir Shukla is co-founder, chief executive officer and board chair of Automation Anywhere, and the only chief executive the company has had.
Ankur Kothari
Ankur Kothari is a co-founder of Automation Anywhere and its chief operating officer, and sits on the board.
Neeti Mehta Shukla
Neeti Mehta Shukla is a co-founder of Automation Anywhere and its chief impact officer. She started the company in 2003 with her husband, Mihir Shukla, alongside Ankur Kothari and Rushabh Parmani, launching it from the guest bedroom of their house.
Rushabh Parmani
Rushabh Parmani is a co-founder of Automation Anywhere and its chief customer officer. He started the business in 2003, originally named Tethys Solutions, alongside Mihir Shukla, Neeti Mehta Shukla and Ankur Kothari.
Zoho
Sridhar Vembu
Sridhar Vembu co-founded AdventNet in 1996 and led the company, renamed Zoho Corporation in 2009, as CEO until January 2025. He kept the company free of venture capital and promoted hiring and training in smaller towns, working from rural Tamil Nadu.
Tony Thomas
Tony Thomas co-founded AdventNet in 1996 and has remained with the company since. He leads Zoho's US business as CEO of Zoho US. (Exact birth year remains publicly undisclosed).
CEOs and their tenures
Automation Anywhere
- Mihir Shukla2003–present
Co-Founder, Chief Executive Officer and Board Chair
Co-founded the company in 2003, has been its only chief executive, and is also board chair. Serves as an information and communications technology governor at the World Economic Forum, where he speaks on agentic enterprise operations.
Source
Zoho
- Sridhar Vembu1996–2025
Co-founder; CEO 1996-2025, now Chief Scientist
Led the company from its founding as AdventNet until January 2025 and kept it free of outside capital; now focuses on research and AI.
Source - Tony Thomas1996–present
Co-founder and CEO, Zoho US
Co-founded AdventNet and leads Zoho's US business.
Source - Shailesh Kumar Davey2025–present
Co-founder and Group Chief Executive Officer
Co-founder who previously led engineering at ManageEngine; became group CEO in January 2025.
Source - Rajesh Ganesan2025–present
CEO, ManageEngine
Leads the ManageEngine IT management division.
Source - Mani Vembu2025–present
CEO, Zoho.com
Leads the Zoho.com business applications division.
Source
Timeline: Automation Anywhere and Zoho side by side
1996Zoho
AdventNet founded
Sridhar Vembu and Tony Thomas start a network management software company.
2003Automation Anywhere
Incorporation as Tethys Solutions in San Jose: Mihir Shukla, Neeti Mehta Shukla, Ankur Kothari and Rushabh Parmani incorporated Tethys Solutions, LLC in San Jose, California, selling software that rec…
2005Zoho
First Zoho Products Released
AdventNet released Zoho Writer, its first online office application, in 2005, followed by Zoho CRM.
2009Zoho
Renamed Zoho Corporation
The company takes the name of its online applications brand.
2010Automation Anywhere
Renamed Automation Anywhere, Inc.: The company rebranded from Tethys Solutions to Automation Anywhere, Inc.
2017Automation Anywhere
First Imagine customer conference: Automation Anywhere held its first Imagine customer and partner event in New York on May 24 and 25, 2017, and ran a second Imagine in Bengaluru in September of the s…
2017Zoho
Zoho One Launched
Zoho launched Zoho One, a single subscription covering its business applications, in July 2017.
2018Automation Anywhere
Bot Store opens as an RPA bot marketplace: Launched in London in March 2018, Bot Store offered prebuilt, plug and play bots from Automation Anywhere and partners including EY and Genpact, cutting the…
2018Automation Anywhere
$250M Series A at a $1.8B valuation: After fifteen years without institutional equity, the company raised $250 million on July 2, 2018 led by New Enterprise Associates and Goldman Sachs Growth Equity,…
2018Automation Anywhere
SoftBank Vision Fund adds $300M: In November 2018 the SoftBank Vision Fund invested $300 million as an extension of the Series A, taking the round to $550 million and the post-money valuation to $2.6…
2019Automation Anywhere
Acquisition of Klevops in Paris: Automation Anywhere acquired Klevops SAS of Paris in August 2019 to orchestrate work between employees and bots, the technology behind the attended automation interfac…
2019Automation Anywhere
Enterprise A2019 launches as a web-based platform: In October 2019 the company shipped Enterprise A2019, a cloud-native browser-based rewrite that it said added more than 175 features across 40 produc…
2019Automation Anywhere
$290M Series B at a $6.8B valuation: Salesforce Ventures led a $290 million Series B announced on November 21, 2019, with SoftBank Investment Advisers and Goldman Sachs participating, at a $6.8 billio…
2020Automation Anywhere
Pandemic restructuring and workforce reduction: In April 2020 Automation Anywhere cut jobs and restructured parts of the company, saying the COVID-19 pandemic and the change it brought to the global e…
2021Automation Anywhere
Enterprise A2019 rebranded Automation 360: In March 2021 the company introduced Automation 360 as the brand for its unified cloud-native platform and widened deployment across AWS, Microsoft Azure and…
2021Automation Anywhere
Acquisition of FortressIQ for process discovery: Announced in December 2021, the FortressIQ deal added computer vision process discovery that maps how work is done across applications and turns it int…
2023Automation Anywhere
Start of an unbroken non-GAAP profitable run: The quarter ended October 31, 2023 began the run of non-GAAP profitable quarters with positive free cash flow that the company counted as ten by the quart…
2024Automation Anywhere
AI plus Automation Enterprise System and AI Agent Studio: At Imagine 2024 in Austin in June 2024 the company unveiled an AI plus Automation Enterprise System with AI Agent Studio, letting customers bu…
2025Automation Anywhere
Acquisition of Aisera: On November 4, 2025 Automation Anywhere acquired Aisera and its team of more than 100 AI engineers, adding self-service AI agents for IT service management, HR and customer serv…
2025Zoho
CEO transition
Shailesh Kumar Davey becomes group CEO in January; Sridhar Vembu becomes chief scientist.
2025Zoho
Semiconductor fab plan shelved
Zoho suspends its planned $700 million compound semiconductor fab in May.
2025Zoho
Rajesh Ganesan becomes CEO
Rajesh Ganesan became CEO of Zoho in 2025. Leads the ManageEngine IT management division.
2026Automation Anywhere
OpenAI collaboration and a tenth profitable quarter: Reporting the quarter ended January 31, 2026, Automation Anywhere recorded its tenth consecutive non-GAAP profitable quarter, said AI products were…
2026Zoho
UAE data centres open
Zoho opens data centres in Dubai and Abu Dhabi in January as part of an ~$27.2 million (AED 100 million) UAE investment.
2026Zoho
FY25 results filed
RoC filings show FY25 revenue of ~$1.43 billion (₹12,313 crore) and net profit of ~$370 million (₹3,191 crore).
Acquisitions
Automation Anywhere
- Aisera2025Undisclosed
- FortressIQ2021Undisclosed
- Klevops2019Undisclosed
Zoho
- ASIMOV Robotics2025Undisclosed
- Yali Aerospace (strategic deep-tech investment)2024$3.6M
- ePoise Systems2019Undisclosed
Questions about Automation Anywhere vs Zoho
Who is the CEO of Automation Anywhere and Zoho?
Automation Anywhere is led by Mihir Shukla and Zoho is led by Shailesh Kumar Davey. Both serve as the top executive responsible for the company's strategy, operations, and financial performance.
When was Automation Anywhere founded vs Zoho?
Zoho was founded in 1996 — 7 years before Automation Anywhere, which was founded in 2003. Zoho's longer operating history gives it a deeper track record but also potentially more institutional inertia compared to the younger Automation Anywhere.
How many employees does Automation Anywhere have compared to Zoho?
Automation Anywhere employs approximately 2,400 people, while Zoho employs approximately 19,000. Zoho has the larger workforce at 19,000 employees, compared to Automation Anywhere's 2,400. A higher headcount does not necessarily imply greater efficiency — it often reflects differences in business model (e.g., manufacturing vs. software).
Where are Automation Anywhere and Zoho headquartered?
Automation Anywhere is headquartered in United States and Zoho is headquartered in India. Their different home markets mean they may face different regulatory frameworks, tax regimes, and currency exposure.
Who founded Automation Anywhere and Zoho?
Automation Anywhere was founded by Mihir Shukla, Ankur Kothari, Neeti Mehta Shukla, Rushabh Parmani. Zoho was founded by Sridhar Vembu, Tony Thomas.
Which company has a longer operating history — Automation Anywhere or Zoho?
Zoho has been operating for approximately 30 years, making it the more established of the two companies. Automation Anywhere has been in operation for around 23 years. A longer operating history often signals greater institutional resilience and brand recognition, though it can also mean slower adaptation to new market conditions.
Figures come from each company's filings and the sources linked beside them. Amounts reported in another currency are shown in US dollars at an approximate rate and marked with ~. Back to the Automation Anywhere vs Zoho overview