Mukesh Ambani’s bold prediction: 'India will emerge as one of the greatest AI powers in 21st century'

Reliance Industries Chairman Mukesh Ambani praised Prime Minister Narendra Modi at the India AI Impact Summit.

Reliance Industries Chairman Mukesh Ambani said India will emerge as one of the greatest AI powers in the world in the 21st century.

At the AI India Impact Summit, Ambani said artificial intelligence can usher in an era of super abundance and offers limitless growth in knowledge, efficiency and productivity. According to him, the best of AI is yet to come.

Ambani said India is already one of the top three startup ecosystems in the world. He recalled that Jio connected India to the internet era, and will now connect the country to the intelligence era. Jio will play a bigger role in India’s AI transformation and deliver intelligence to every citizen, every sector of the economy and every part of social development and government service.

He added that AI will not take away jobs but has the potential to create new employment opportunities across sectors. "We will partner with very best tech companies not as importers of intelligence but co-architects of next century," he said.

In a landmark announcement, Ambani said that Jio, in partnership with RIL, will invest Rs 10 lakh crore over the next seven years to accelerate India’s AI capabilities.

He  emphasised that the investment is not speculative. “It is not purchasing valuation. This is patient, disciplined, nation-building capital, designed to create durable economic value,” he said. Highlighting the country’s long-term vision, he added, “India cannot afford to rent intelligence. Therefore, we will reduce the cost of intelligence as dramatically as we did the cost of data.”

Ambani noted that the biggest constraint in AI today is not talent or imagination, but the scarcity and high cost of computing power. “For the first time, humans are creating human-like systems that can learn, speak, analyse, move, and produce autonomously,” he said.

Drawing an analogy from Indian mythology, Ambani compared AI to the Akshaya Patra, the legendary vessel from the Mahabharata that provided endless nourishment. “I see AI as a modern-day Akshaya Patra, capable of providing limitless value and opportunities to all,” he said. The Akshaya Patra, gifted by Lord Surya to Yudhishthira, ensured the Pandavas and their guests were never hungry during their forest exile.