Zoho founder Sridhar Vembu‘s recent social media post on ‘rising cases of autism linked to vaccination’ has created quite a stir online. Vembu, in an X post, wrote how India is seeing a sharp uptick in autism cases as parents are ‘giving too many vaccines to very young children’.
The billionaire CEO made the comment, citing findings of a McCullough Foundation report, asking parents to take the analysis seriously. The review of over 300 studies published on October 27, mentions early and combined childhood vaccination among the top risk factors behind autism spectrum disorder (ASD).
“Parents should take this analysis seriously. I believe there is increasing evidence that we are giving way too many vaccines to very young children. This is spreading in India too and we are seeing a rapid increase in autism in India,” Vembu wrote on X?
Parents should take this analysis seriously. I believe there is increasing evidence that we are giving way too many vaccines to very young children. This is spreading in India too and we are seeing a rapid increase in autism in India. https://t.co/AeiVaieYug
— Sridhar Vembu (@svembu) October 28, 2025
His comments have triggered an intense debate among netizens with some supporting his stance, while others expressing concerns about the adverse effects of non-vaccination.
What Netizens are saying
“Vaccines save millions of kids lives by stopping deadly diseases like measles and polio. In India, they’ve cut child deaths by over 50% since 1990. Autism rise links to better diagnosis, not vaccines. Big studies prove no connection. Evolution brings safer, combo shots that protect with fewer pokes. Strong science shows vaccinated kids are healthier overall. Trust vaccines. They build strong futures, wrote a user.
“Great courage to send this message. Hope many eyes open up, particularly of the medical community in India. People just need to ask the simple question put up by @RobertKennedyJr
.. where are the autistic people of 50,60 years of age? Why almost none seen in that age group?” another wrote.
“Anti vaxers community is growing in India with this new anti science virus getting imported from the US. We should defend against this new virus for a healthy India,” a comment read.
Former IAS officer Dr PV Ramesh, joined the online debate, urging Vembu to delete his post, calling it “devastatingly reckless” and a “threat to public health.”
Responding to Vembu’s remarks on vaccines and autism, Ramesh wrote on X, “This is India with a high burden of vaccine-preventable communicable diseases. How could you cite a dodgy ‘western’ source to make such a sweeping recommendation? Stop peddling dangerous propaganda. Stick to what you know. Please don’t venture into the #PublicHealth domain.”
Standing by what he said, Vembu said he won’t delete his post.
“I will not delete my post. I stand by what I said. The term “Dodgy western source” should be applied to FDA and CDC recommendations, by the way. Those institutions do not deserve blind faith. The brave doctors who are questioning the dogma are doing a valuable service,” he wrote.
“Science progresses only when we question dogma and what you are peddling is dogma, in the name of “Science”,” he added.
What the studies say
There isn’t sufficient evidence that link vaccination to autism. According to Reuters, studies show vaccines to be safe, as they help eradicate childhood diseases such as polio and measles in the US. UNICEF USA President & CEO Michael J. Nyenhuis has said over the last 50 years, it is estimated that essential vaccines have saved at least 154 million lives.
What the McCullough Foundation report claims
The researchers found that combination routine childhood vaccination was among several factors they associated with new-onset autism spectrum disorder (ASD) before the age of 9 years, along with older parental age, premature delivery, common genetic variants, siblings with autism, and maternal immune activation.
The report says 79% of studies on vaccines establish autism link, mentioning unvaccinated children consistently show lower autism risk.
The review analyzed 136 studies on childhood vaccines and neurodevelopmental outcomes, reporting that while 29 found no association, 107 suggested a possible link between vaccination or its components and autism spectrum disorder (ASD) or other neurodevelopmental disorders.
Additionally, the researchers cited 12 studies comparing vaccinated and unvaccinated groups, which they said showed better overall health outcomes and lower rates of chronic and neuropsychiatric conditions, including autism, among the unvaccinated.
The study concludes that autism spectrum disorder (ASD) arises from multiple interacting factors, including genetic, environmental, immune, and perinatal influences. It identifies combination and early-timed childhood vaccination as a major modifiable risk factor contributing to ASD.
Major controversies surrounding study authors
The report is penned by Peter McCullough and Andrew Wakefield, with latter being the author of a retracted 1998 study published in The Lancet falsely claiming a link between the MMR (measles, mumps, rubella) vaccine and autism. McCullough’s claims about vaccine safety and pandemic management too have been debunked by scientific and medical authorities.
As per WHO, and CDC, childhood vaccines are safe and many large-scale studies haven’t found any link with autism.
What Vembu said earlier about childhood Hepatitis B vaccination
Vembu earlier this year had expressed his reservations on newborns getting Hepatitis B vaccine. After a backlash, the entrepreneur had defended his statement saying it’s “not anti-science to ask such common-sense questions.”
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