Did Mukesh Ambani Just Reveal His Big, Multi-Billion Dollar Plan Behind Jio?

New Delhi: At a time when telecom in India was seen as a laggard by many, including industry insiders, RIL Chairman Mukesh Ambani invested more than $30 billion in Jio. While some telcos have recently said the competition had to write-off $50 billion due to Jio's data offerings at 'impractically low prices', even independent analysts kept wondering how Jio plans to make profit.

The answer, it seems, not only lies in scale but also in Ambani's dream for a digital future. One got a glimpse into the mind of RIL chairman, the richest Indian, on Friday when he spoke at Hindustan Times Leadership Summit. There were moments when the oil-to-retail oligarch sounded like the founder of a start-up, ready to disrupt things as the world knows them.

Three biggest challenges before India—agriculture, education and healthcare—he said, will see a digital revolution in the next five years, achieving more than the past many decades. And Jio plans to lead this change.

"Thanks to Jio, Indians already consume more broadband data than China and the US," Ambani told an amazed audience, before adding that Indian economy has potential to grow three-fold in the next decade. "Yes, we can! And within this century, India can become more prosperous than both China and the US."

"The world is moving from linear to exponential. Such a process starts slowly but brings about big change rapidly... we are moving from scarcity to abundance. In digital age, the price performance of everything changes," he said.

Calling for India to migrate from goods and services-driven economy to intelligence-driven economy, Ambani said, "What manufacturing was for China, intelligence can be for India. In coming years, machine intelligence will create unparalleled user delight."

A digital green revolution, he said, will transform lives of over 60% Indians living in villages who depend on agriculture. He said it's blessing in disguise that we don't have legacy infrastructure to maintain and can straightaway implement the best in technology.

He, however, was quick to remind that imported solutions won't work in India where affordability and scale are a must. Aadhaar, Ambani said, was an example of indigenous digital solution where within a few years we have built a biometric database of billion-plus Indians.

In affordable healthcare, he said, India must set a digital model which the rest of the world can follow.

Only digital technology can provide quality education to millions of young Indians. "We can become knowledge and start-up hub of the world… people are our biggest asset. Through digital tools, we can educate and empower our rich human resource," he said.

No wonder, his advice to international investors was equally bullish: "Be a part of India's rise, invest in India, earn in India, grow in India and prosper in India."

For competitors, who have been complaining of write-offs after Jio launch, his message was: "Profits and losses are risks that businesses take. We can’t rely on governments or regulators to ensure profit… As long as the consumers gain and country moves forward, the big boys should accept losses as part of the game."

When asked what money means to the richest Indian, “not much,” he said with a smile. "I don't have credit card. I don't even carry cash. I always have someone around me who pays."

(Disclosure: News18.com is part of Network18 Media & Investment Limited which is owned by Reliance Industries Limited that also owns Reliance Jio)