“Still waiting for green card after three years in US,” says Indian CEO of Perplexity AI

Most people leave India and plan to settle in the US in hopes of a better lifestyle and standard of living, but they also face their own obstacles while living away from their home country. One of the most well-known challenges faced by those who live, work or study in the United States and seek permanent residence is the path to obtaining a green card.

Many people can share personal experiences about the obstacles they have encountered, while others are unaware of the long wait times and complex procedures involved in the entire process. Many people, including leading professionals such as the Indian CEO of US company Perplexity AI, navigate the same bureaucratic labyrinth.

Rohit Krishnan, chief product officer at Bdo.ai, recently sparked critical debate about the challenges immigrants face in the US with a post on social network X (formerly Twitter). On social media, he highlighted the enormous effort required to obtain a green card, sharing his experience as a three-time immigrant. Krishnan said despite living in several countries, the US process was the most difficult of all.

One thing I’ve discovered about the immigrant dialogue is how few people discussing it know how difficult it actually is to immigrate to this country. I’ve been an immigrant three times now, and my stay in the US has been the longest and hardest I’ve ever had.

— Rohit (@krishnanrohit) October 30, 2024

Yeah. I have been waiting for my green card for the last 3 years. I still don’t understand. People for the most part have no idea when they talk about immigration. https://t.co/X2o34kiFjP

— Aravind Srinivas (@AravSrinivas) October 30, 2024

In his post, Krishnan told the story of a Tesla investor who lived legally in the United States for more than 14 years, but spent nine of them waiting for a green card. This resonated with Aravind Srinivas, CEO of Perplexity AI, a San Francisco-based artificial intelligence search engine, who joined the conversation and shared his experiences. Srinivas said he had been waiting for his green card for more than three years. “People basically have no idea when they talk about immigration,” he noted.

It is disheartening to realize that even immigrants like Srinivas, who have contributed significantly to the US economy, have to navigate such uncertainty.

Several other X users shared their experiences; one user wrote: “I went through this process in Denmark (a notoriously difficult immigration process) and it was terrible. I know things are much worse in the US and I have nothing but the deepest respect and admiration for the people who did this. these men ipso facto personify American resolve.”

“It took me 15 years and I was one of the lucky ones (the rest of the world). If you’re Indian or Chinese, you’re basically screwed,” another user added.