Renowned venture capitalist Vinod Khosla, the initial investor in OpenAI and co-founder of Sun Microsystems, has entered the discourse surrounding Infosys co-founder N R Narayana Murthy’s contentious suggestion that young people in India should work 70 hours a week to enhance the country’s productivity. In a candid Q&A session, Khosla provided his perspective on the matter, urging individuals offended by Murthy’s comments to “learn to toughen up” and suggesting that seeking mental health therapy may be necessary for those who felt attacked.
Responding to a post on X (formerly Twitter), Khosla stated, “For people who ‘felt attacked’ by this, they need mental health therapy. They should learn to ‘toughen up’ and not feel attacked. OK to not work 70hrs/wk and live with the consequences of the choices you make. He is speaking to ‘career ambitious’ young people, but there are other ways to live with different choices.”
Khosla emphasized the freedom of choice, acknowledging that opting not to work a 70-hour week might mean sacrificing certain material markers of success. He noted, “Not working 70hrs/wk may not get you the biggest house or car to show to your neighbors, but you can make that choice. Lots of other things make people happy. Be internally driven and not externally driven by what others expect of success: bigger titles, bigger house don’t make everyone happy.”
The controversy stemmed from Narayan Murthy’s comments during a conversation with former Infosys CFO Mohandas Pai on 3one4 Capital’s podcast ‘The Record.’ Murthy advocated for young people to invest extra hours at work, emphasizing the need to boost India’s work productivity to compete with leading global economies such as China, Japan, and Germany.
The divergent perspectives presented by Khosla and Murthy on the ideal work week underscore the ongoing debate around work-life balance, individual choices, and societal expectations. As prominent figures in the tech and business world contribute their insights, the discourse prompts reflection on the broader implications of such recommendations for the workforce and the evolving dynamics of the Indian economy.