‘Best of AI yet to come,’ says Mukesh Ambani; likens tech to modern-day ‘akshaya patra’

Reliance Industries Limited chairman Mukesh Ambani

Speaking at the India AI Impact Summit on Thursday, Reliance Industries chairman Mukesh Ambani praised Prime Minister Narendra Modi, calling him the guiding inspiration for the gathering. The Reliance Industries chief compared artificial intelligence to a “modern-day akshaya patra”, representing infinite possibilities for development and wealth creation.

"Artificial Intelligence is not just another technology. For the first time, humans are creating human-like systems that can learn, speak, analyse, move and produce autonomously. AI is the mantra that powers every machine and system to work faster, better and smart," Mukesh Ambani said at the gathering, adding that "we are only at the dawn of this era and the best of AI is yet to come".

The RIL chief said he sees AI as a "modern-day Akshaya patra", the legendary vessel in the Mahabharat that provided endless nourishment to all. "Likewise, AI offers limitless augmentation in knowledge, efficiency, and productivity," he said.

Addressing the summit, Ambani also made what he called a "bold prediction" on the future of AI in India. "India will emerge as one of the greatest AI powers in the world in the 21st century. My confidence is validated by an undeniable truth. In the coming decades, no country in the world can match India's strength in demography, democracy, development, digital infrastructure, data generation, AI harvest," he said.

"India is the world's largest mobile data consumer. Nearly 1 billion internet users, data costs among the lowest globally. And in terms of quality, there is no difference between Delhi and the remotest Indian village. Second, Aadhaar, 1.4 billion digital IDs. Third, UPI processes over 12 billion transactions monthly. Fourth, India ranks among the top three start-up ecosystems with 100,000 start-ups and 100 plus unicorns. Fifth, India's secure and inclusive digital public infrastructure stack is now being adopted by countries around the globe. In all humility, I wish to state that Jio, with over 500 million loyal subscribers, was privileged to play a leading role in this transformation across broadband, 4G, 5G, and home connectivity," Ambani said.