In an era where writing code is no longer a skill limited to engineers, Mukund Jha is leading a quiet revolution. As the co-founder and CEO of Emergent, he’s on a mission to make software creation as natural as having a conversation. Along with his twin brother Madhav Jha, Emergent is pioneering what they call “vibe coding” — a breakthrough approach that lets anyone build fully functional, production-ready apps simply by describing them in plain language.
The Making of a Visionary
Born and raised in India, Mukund’s fascination with technology began early. After graduating in Computer Science from Motilal Nehru National Institute of Technology, he pursued his Master’s degree at Columbia Engineering in New York, specializing in machine learning, NLP, and speech processing. His journey included hands-on experiences at Google and IIT Madras, where he explored how machines could understand and respond to human intent — an idea that would later define his career.
But before founding Emergent, Mukund had already made his mark in India’s tech ecosystem. As co-founder and CTO of Dunzo, he helped transform the country’s on-demand delivery landscape, scaling the company into one of India’s most recognized startups. Yet, even at the height of Dunzo’s success, Mukund found himself captivated by a deeper challenge: what if anyone could create software, not just engineers?
The Spark Behind Emergent
That question became the seed for Emergent, founded in 2024 with his brother Madhav, now the company’s CTO. The duo saw a global pain point — brilliant creators with game-changing ideas, but no coding skills or access to developers.
Their vision: build a platform where AI acts as your engineering team. You describe your idea; AI agents write the code, connect databases, design the UI, test for bugs, and even deploy the app — all autonomously.
In essence, Emergent doesn’t just help people build apps faster; it makes software creation accessible to anyone with imagination.
The Growth Story
The response was explosive. Within months of its 2025 launch, Emergent surpassed 700,000 users, generated $15 million in ARR, and saw over 1.5 million applications built on its platform. Backed by Lightspeed Venture Partners, Y Combinator, and investors like Jeff Dean and Balaji Srinivasan, Emergent quickly became one of the fastest-growing players in the global AI ecosystem.
What sets it apart is its focus on production-grade quality — apps built on Emergent aren’t just prototypes; they’re scalable, secure, and ready for market.
Mukund’s Philosophy
Mukund believes in a world where AI acts as an equal creative partner, not a replacement for human ingenuity. He often compares Emergent’s mission to the iPhone’s impact on photography — “just as smartphones made everyone a photographer, AI will make everyone a creator.”
To him, the real innovation isn’t in automating code; it’s in removing the fear of technology. “You shouldn’t have to understand syntax to bring your ideas to life,” he says. “You should just be able to talk to your computer — and it should understand you.”
Looking Ahead
Under Mukund’s leadership, Emergent is now exploring agentic AI systems capable of improving themselves — AI that learns from every project it builds. The company’s roadmap includes deeper integrations with enterprise systems, stronger data security layers, and expanding into new markets to support businesses of all sizes.
Mukund envisions a near future where software writes software, and human creativity becomes the guiding force behind intelligent, self-building digital ecosystems.
Conclusion
From a small-town computer science student to leading one of the world’s most promising AI startups, Mukund Jha’s journey with Emergent reflects the spirit of modern innovation — inclusive, bold, and human-centric. By turning words into working applications, he’s not just transforming how we build technology — he’s redefining who gets to build it.
Emergent isn’t just an AI platform; it’s a movement — one that’s empowering a new generation of creators to bring their ideas to life, no code required.
