Sridhar Vembu Signals Long-Term Push for Zoho’s Arattai Chat App

Zoho founder and CEO Sridhar Vembu has finally shared a rare update on Arattai, the company’s homegrown messaging app that once drew attention as a privacy-first alternative to WhatsApp. Breaking the silence on social media platform X, Vembu made it clear that Arattai is far from abandoned and is instead being shaped patiently behind the scenes.

Responding to a user who asked why the app has not been discussed much lately, Vembu revealed that the development team is actively working on it. “We are doing updates weekly. We are working on some very important features,” he wrote. He also explained Zoho’s cautious approach to growth, adding, “We will market it more once we feel we are satisfied with the feature set! This is a marathon. We are geared for it.”

The response came after an X user, @shakrajit_life, questioned Arattai’s current status and its absence from public conversations. While Vembu did not disclose what the upcoming features are, his comments underline a deliberate, long-term strategy rather than a rush for visibility or viral adoption.

Zoho’s approach to Arattai mirrors the company’s broader philosophy. Known for avoiding venture capital funding and aggressive advertising, Zoho has often focused on building products quietly before pushing them to a wider audience. Arattai, launched in beta during the COVID-19 lockdowns in early 2021, appears to be following the same path.

Named after the Tamil word for “chit-chat,” Arattai was built by Zoho engineers as a secure and private messaging platform. Over time, it has steadily added features expected from modern chat apps, including encrypted personal and group conversations, voice and video calls, media sharing, cloud backups, contact syncing, and disappearing messages.

In recent months, the app has gained more advanced capabilities such as multi-device login, custom themes, and deeper integration with Zoho’s own ecosystem. Users of Zoho Mail and Zoho Workplace, in particular, have seen tighter connectivity between Arattai and other Zoho services. The company has also been testing enhanced media sharing and more sophisticated group management tools, which could appeal to small businesses and teams already invested in Zoho’s productivity suite.

Despite these improvements, Arattai has remained relatively low-profile compared to global messaging giants like WhatsApp, Telegram, and Signal. According to Vembu’s comments, that low visibility is intentional. Zoho appears determined to prioritise product maturity, engineering quality, and user trust before committing resources to large-scale promotion.

Industry observers have long wondered what lies ahead for Arattai, especially after privacy debates brought it early attention in 2021. Since then, Zoho has largely stayed focused on its enterprise cloud and software offerings. However, with weekly updates and hints of “very important features,” Arattai may be gearing up for a renewed push in the coming year.

Some users have already noticed beta testing of smarter file-sharing options and improved cross-device synchronisation. Others have spotted possible signs of future integration with Zoho Cliq, the company’s enterprise communication tool. If these developments come together, Arattai could emerge as a rare platform that blends consumer messaging with business-ready communication—very much in line with Zoho’s patient, long-distance mindset.