A startup co-founder is facing widespread criticism online after his harsh response to a former employee’s viral post about being fired.
The controversy began when Namya Khan, now co-founder of the design agency Supafast, shared a post about being let go from her first tech job in 2023. She said she was told her role might be replaced by AI, but used the experience as a launchpad for entrepreneurship.
“Lesson: If it won’t matter in five years, don’t give it five minutes of panic.”
“Looking back, getting fired was the best thing that ever happened to me,” Namya Khan wrote in her post
Khan didn’t name the company in her post. But Keswin Suresh, co-founder of DarDoc, publicly responded, claiming her version of events was misleading.“The truth is simple. The work was sloppy, deadlines were missed… This wasn’t AI replacing a job. This was someone not doing the job,” he wrote.
“The truth is simple. The work was sloppy, deadlines were missed… This wasn’t AI replacing a job. This was someone not doing the job,” Keswin Suresh wrote in his post.
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“Don’t rewrite history. Don’t twist facts… You weren’t replaced by AI. You were replaced by someone who could actually ship working code.”
Suresh’s response was swiftly condemned by many online, with users calling it “unprofessional” and “insecure.” Critics pointed out that Khan never mentioned DarDoc, and said the CEO’s post drew unnecessary negative attention to his startup.“You just made your startup look way worse than she did,” one user commented.
“This is not how a founder reacts,” wrote another. “Even if you felt the need to respond, this wasn’t the way.”
Suresh later posted a clarification defending his position, but the internet largely remained critical of his tone and timing.
