Indian-American tech entrepreneur Jay Chaudhry, CEO of the cybersecurity firm Zscaler, ranks eighth on Forbes’ 2025 list of richest immigrant billionaires in the United States.
Jay Chaudhry, the 65-year-old CEO of Zscaler, has secured a notable position among the wealthiest immigrant billionaires in the United States, as revealed by Forbes’ 2025 rankings. With a strong foothold in the tech industry, Chaudhry is the only Indian to appear in the prestigious top 10 list, ranking eighth overall.
Born in 1960 in a small Himalayan village in India, Chaudhry’s early life was characterized by significant challenges, with his hometown lacking basic amenities like electricity and running water during his school years. Despite these hardships, he excelled academically and pursued an education in engineering at Banaras Hindu University, currently known as IIT (BHU) Varanasi.
In 1980, Chaudhry moved to the United States to further his studies, marking his first experience flying in a plane. He went on to earn Master of Science degrees in electronic and computer engineering and industrial engineering and management from the University of Cincinnati, and he also studied at Harvard Business School.
Chaudhry’s journey in the tech world took a significant turn when he founded Zscaler in 2008. The company has since evolved into one of the prominent cloud-based cybersecurity firms globally, going public on Nasdaq a decade later. Today, Chaudhry and his family own approximately 40% of the company.
Before establishing Zscaler, Chaudhry, alongside his wife Jyoti, had already ventured into the tech industry by founding several other tech companies. These included SecureIT, CoreHarbor, CipherTrust, and AirDefense, all of which were subsequently acquired, paving the way for his later success.
As of 2025, Chaudhry’s net worth is estimated at $17.9 billion, which is about ₹1.49 lakh crore. He resides in Reno, Nevada, where he continues to be influential in the cybersecurity sector.
The Forbes 2025 list of richest immigrant billionaires is led by Tesla CEO Elon Musk, followed by Google co-founder Sergey Brin, Nvidia’s Jensen Huang, and entrepreneur Thomas Peterffy. Jay Chaudhry sits in eighth place, surpassing notable names such as WhatsApp co-founder Jan Koum and Kingston Technology CEO John Tu.
For the information presented in this article, the original details are drawn from the Financial Express.