Who Is Jayshree Ullal? The Indian-American CEO With a $4 Billion Net Worth—Richer Than Pichai and Nadella

Sakshi Jadhav, Sanvi Barjatya

10 Jun 2025 — 5 min read

Jayshree Ullal, CEO & President, Arista Networks

In the fast-paced world of technological innovation, few stories shine as brightly as Jayshree Ullal's. She is one of the most influential women in technology and among the richest self-made women in the world.

As the President and CEO of Arista Networks since 2008, Ullal has not only built a powerhouse in the cloud networking space but has also stated what it means to be a leader in a male-dominated tech industry like Microsoft, Meta, and Google Cloud.

Let’s explore the inspiring story of Jayshree Ullal, who helped build the Internet as we know it, one step at a time.

Jayshree Ullal - Biography

Name	Jayshree V. Ullal
Born	March 27, 1961, London, United Kingdom
Nationality	American (born to Indian parents)
Profession	CEO & President, Arista Networks
Education	B.S. in Electrical Engineering, San Francisco State University M.S. in Engineering Management, Santa Clara University
Spouse	Vijay Ullal
Children	2 Daughters
Net Worth	$4 Billion ( as of April 2025)

Jayshree Ullal - Early Life and Education
Jayshree Ullal - Career Beginnings
Jayshree Ullal - The Arista Networks Story
Jayshree Ullal - Stock Holdings and Wealth
Jayshree Ullal - Board Roles and Influence
Jayshree Ullal - Awards & Recognitions

Jayshree Ullal - Early Life and Education

Jayshree Ullal was born in London in a Hindu family, where her father, a physicist by training, served with the Indian government. His mission was to strengthen academic collaborations between Indian and British universities.

When she was just four years old, the family moved back to India. She spent her early years in New Delhi, where she studied at the Convent of Jesus and Mary, an all-girls Catholic school known for its academic rigour and discipline.

Then she later moved to the United States at the age of 16. She pursued Electrical Engineering at San Francisco State University and later earned a master’s degree in Engineering Management from Santa Clara University.

Jayshree Ullal lives in Saratoga, California, with her husband, Vijay Ullal, a venture capitalist and former President & COO of Fairchild Semiconductor. The couple has two daughters.

She is also the sister of the late Susie Nagpal, a former Saratoga City Councilwoman, who is survived by her own son and daughter.

Jayshree Ullal - Career Beginnings

Her career formally began in the 1980s, with over a decade spent at Fairchild Semiconductor and AMD, where she made a significant transition from engineering into business and marketing.

She later joined networking pioneer Ungermann‑Bass, attracted by the leadership vision of John Chambers. In 1993, she became VP of Marketing at Crescendo Communications, which Cisco promptly acquired, marking its first acquisition and ushering her into the company.

Rapidly ascending at Cisco, Ullal led the Catalyst LAN switching business to $7 billion between 1993 and 2000. As Senior Vice President of the Data Center, Switching and Services Group, she oversaw multi-billion-dollar operations, acquisitions, and strategic growth initiatives.

Jayshree was responsible for a $10B data center, switching, and services business, prior to joining Cisco.

In October 2008, long-time colleagues Andy Bechtolsheim and David Cheriton personally recruited her to lead their startup, Arista Networks, as President and CEO, marking a pivotal moment in her distinguished tech career.

Jayshree Ullal - The Arista Networks Story

When Jayshree Ullal joined Arista Networks in 2008, it was a relatively unknown startup in the crowded networking space. Under her guidance, Arista went public in June 2014, and the company’s growth ratio has been nothing short of extraordinary.

Under Jayshree Ullal’s leadership, Arista Networks transformed from a startup into a powerhouse in the networking industry, achieving a milestone IPO in June 2014. The company has become a major player in data center networking solutions with its innovations in 10/25/40/50/100/400/800 Gigabit Ethernet networking.

The revenue soared from under $200 million in 2010 to over $5.7 billion in 2024, with key clients including Microsoft Azure, Meta, Amazon AWS, and Google Cloud, all relying on Arista’s high-performance, scalable switches and routing systems to run hyperscale data centers. Arista is targeting $1.5 billion in AI-related revenue in 2025.

Jayshree Ullal - Stock Holdings and Wealth

Jayashree Ullal directly holds about 3% of Arista’s shares. The publicly-traded company recorded revenue of $7 billion in 2024, up nearly 20% from the prior year. Forbes notes that some of this stake is designated for her children, niece, and nephew.

Jayshree Ullal - Board Roles and Influence

Beyond Arista, Jayshree Ullal has been a member of Snowflake Inc.’s board since mid‑2020, reflecting her influence in cloud and data infrastructure. She is a recurring figure in Fortune’s “Most Powerful Women in Business” rankings.

Jayshree Ullal - Awards & Recognitions

Entrepreneur of the Year – Ernst & Young (2015): She was recognized for her impressive leadership in scaling Arista Networks into a major player in the cloud networking space. The award celebrated her innovative strategies and transformative impact on the tech industry.
World’s Best CEOs – Barron’s (2018): Ullal was named among the global elite for her consistent performance, long-term vision, and shareholder value creation. Ullal stood out for her focus on profitable growth and technological excellence.
Top 20 Business Persons – Fortune (2019): She was honoured for delivering exceptional results while driving innovation in a competitive industry. Her leadership helped Arista outperform many legacy tech companies on both revenue and relevance.
Global Indian of the Year – The Economic Times (2023): The award underscored her contributions to India’s image in the global business ecosystem.
Silicon Valley Power 100 – Silicon Valley Business Journal (2023 & 2024): She was featured in the prestigious list of the most influential executives shaping the future of tech. Her repeated inclusion reflects sustained leadership, influence, and business excellence in Silicon Valley.

FAQs