Akash Ambani says companies will have to embrace AI or their future is very bleak

The rise of artificial intelligence (AI) has positioned India to become a global leader in technology and innovation, Reliance Jio Infocomm Chairman Akash Ambani said at the Mumbai Tech Week on February 28.

He warned that companies reluctant to embrace AI could risk being left behind.

Speaking at the event on Friday, Ambani noted how India has transitioned from being perceived as a “technological laggard” to a nation at the forefront of innovation.

He emphasized that India’s advancements in connectivity and digital payments, particularly the Unified Payments Interface (UPI), are prime examples of how the country has successfully leveraged technology to gain global recognition.

He highlighted the export of India's UPI system to countries such as France, Singapore, the UAE, Sri Lanka, Mauritius, Bhutan, and Nepal as a testament to India's technological prowess.

Calling AI "the most significant technological advancement of our lifetimes," Ambani projected that it would be a key driver of India's economic growth, potentially pushing it into double digits.

He urged businesses and policymakers to prioritize investment in AI infrastructure, warning that time is of the essence.

In January, Reliance Industries announced a gigawatt-ready AI data centre in Jamnagar, Gujarat, which could become the world's largest in terms of capacity. The facility will integrate NVIDIA's state-of-the-art AI semiconductors and aims to reach a 3-gigawatt capacity, significantly surpassing the world's current largest data centres.

Ambani also revealed that Jio has assembled a full-stack AI team comprising over 1,000 data scientists, researchers, and engineers, underscoring the company's commitment to AI-driven growth.

Addressing concerns over AI’s impact on employment, Ambani drew parallels with the Internet revolution, which, while disrupting traditional jobs, also created new industries such as fintech, e-commerce, and the creator economy. He expressed confidence that AI would similarly reshape jobs rather than eliminate them.

Ambani highlighted AI’s potential to tackle pressing challenges in education, agriculture, and healthcare, stressing the need for collaboration between government, private enterprises, and academia.

He also underscored that AI should not be viewed in isolation but as part of a broader deeptech framework, integrating key layers like connectivity, compute (data centres), devices, content, and intelligence.

Ambani concluded with a call to action for companies to adopt AI-driven strategies, warning that businesses resisting AI face a bleak future.

With the Indian government allocating ₹2,000 crore to the IndiaAI Mission, a nearly 300% budget increase from last year, Ambani believes the country is poised for AI leadership.

However, he stressed that to fully capitalize on AI’s potential, the focus should be on seamless AI adoption across industries, not just isolated technological advancements.