Billionaire Ambani Taps Google, Meta To Build India’s Ai Backbone

Mukesh Ambani, India’s richest man and president of Reliance Industries, has unveiled an eager scheme to build nan country’s AI backbone done a caller subsidiary — starting pinch strategical partnerships pinch Google Cloud and Meta.

At nan company’s 48th yearly wide gathering connected Friday, Ambani launched a caller task called Reliance Intelligence, a subsidiary of Reliance Industries. The caller task intends to create a national-scale AI infrastructure, including endeavor devices and services for a assortment of sectors. The move comes arsenic India looks to drawback up successful nan world AI title agelong dominated by nan U.S. and China.

“Reliance Intelligence will create a location for world-class researchers, engineers, designers, and merchandise builders, combining nan velocity of investigation pinch nan rigor of engineering,” Ambani said successful his keynote, “so that ideas go innovations and applications, providing solutions to India and nan world.”

To footwear things off, Reliance has collaborated pinch Google — one of its awesome tech partners — to build a dedicated AI unreality infrastructure successful India. The web will commencement pinch a awesome information halfway successful Jamnagar, a metropolis successful nan occidental authorities of Gujarat.

The dedicated unreality region will alteration Reliance to connection AI-focused services to businesses of each sizes, developers, and authorities bodies, utilizing Jio’s web and its ain power assets to support large-scale deployments, nan companies said successful their associated statement.

“As Reliance’s largest nationalist unreality partner, Google Cloud is not only powering nan company’s mission-critical workloads, but we are besides innovating pinch you connected precocious AI initiatives,” Google CEO Sundar Pichai said successful a video connection during nan company’s virtual AGM. “This is only nan beginning.”

Google did not instantly respond to a query astir nan financial position of nan partnership.

Reliance has besides announced a associated task pinch Meta, different of its awesome tech investors, to build and standard endeavor AI solutions for customers successful India and prime world markets. Under nan agreement, Reliance and Meta person committed a mixed finance of ₹8.55 cardinal (approximately $100 million) nether a 70:30 ownership split, respectively.

The business will connection Meta’s Llama-based endeavor AI platform-as-a-service, allowing businesses to customize, deploy, and negociate generative AI models for usage cases crossed sales, marketing, IT, customer service, and finance. The associated task will besides supply a suite of pre-configured AI solutions, nan companies said.

Reliance’s collaboration comes conscionable weeks aft Meta restructured its AI ventures into a caller Superintelligence Labs, fueled by an costly drawstring of apical AI hires. (Meta has reportedly pausing nan hiring spree aft interest from shareholders.)

“Through this associated venture, we’re putting Meta’s Llama models into real-world use,” Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg said successful a prepared statement.

The transaction is taxable to customary regulatory approvals and is expected to adjacent successful nan 4th fourth of 2025.

Reliance is readying to grow beyond India and return its flagship subsidiary, Reliance Jio Platforms to world markets, Ambani said. Ambani besides revealed that Jio intends to record for an first nationalist offering successful nan first half of 2026, pursuing much anticipation and first delays.

Reliance is besides reportedly eyeing a business pinch OpenAI, which precocious introduced its sub-$5 ChatGPT subscription successful India and announced its plans to set up an agency successful New Delhi later this year. The specifications of nan business are apt to beryllium announced during Sam Altman’s upcoming sojourn to India adjacent month, 2 group acquainted pinch nan matter told TechCrunch.

Reliance and OpenAI did not instantly respond to a petition for comment.

Earlier this year, Reliance’s arch-rival Bharti Airtel, nan country’s second-largest telco aft Jio, partnered pinch Perplexity to connection much than 360 cardinal Airtel subscribers entree to Perplexity Pro for 12 months.

Reliance has already collaborated pinch Microsoft to connection its Azure unreality level to Indian enterprises. The institution besides offers JioAICloud, a consumer-focused work that provides 100GB of free storage. The user unreality work has been utilized by 40 cardinal users and is updated pinch sound hunt support and an AI Create Hub to move photos into AI-powered reels, collages, and promo videos, nan institution announced astatine its yearly wide meeting.

Reliance besides showcased its AI-based smart glasses, JioFrames, arsenic its reply to Snap’s Spectacles and Ray-Ban Meta glasses. Similarly, nan institution is integrating AI into its streaming platform, JioHotstar, which has attracted complete 600 cardinal users and 300 cardinal paying subscribers successful nan 3 months since its motorboat successful February.

The caller AI features see “Riya” sound adjunct and contented translator into Indian languages utilizing AI-voice cloning and lip-syncing tech.