‘India was stuck with 2G, Jio ended data misery’, says Mukesh Ambani -- read the full speech here

Chairman and managing director of oil-to-telecom major Reliance Industries Mukesh Ambani today delivered a speech at the TM Forum's Digital Transformation World Series 2020 Virtual Conference.

In the speech he said, “India missed out on the first two industrial revolutions and the changes brought about by them.” Before Jio, India was stuck with 2G technology and it wanted to end India’s data misery and unleash a digital revolution, he added.

Distinguished Leaders and Attendees,

Greetings from India.

Let me first wish all of you, and your dear ones, the best of health and safety.

I want to thank Nik, Steffen and TM Forum for inviting me to talk about the journey of Jio and our vision for India’s digital future.

Friends,

India missed out on the first two industrial revolutions and the changes brought about by them.

During the third industrial revolution, where Information Technology came to prominence, India joined the race but still remained behind, trying to catch up with the leaders.

As we step into the fourth industrial revolution, India has the opportunity, not just to catch up with the leaders but to emerge as a global leader itself.

The Fourth Industrial Revolution is driven by the convergence of digital and physical technologies… such as Digital connectivity, Cloud and Edge computing, IoT and smart devices, Artificial Intelligence, Robotics, Blockchain, AR/VR and genomics.

And the three foundational requirements needed to participate in this revolution are ultra-high-speed connectivity, affordable smart devices and transformational digital applications and solutions.

Jio was conceived for India to enable this journey.

Let me first talk about connectivity…

Before Jio, India was stuck with 2G technology…

And Jio wanted to end India’s data misery and unleash a digital revolution.

We built a world-class, all-IP, future-proof digital network that delivers the highest speeds and the best coverage across India.

While it took 25 years for the Indian telecom industry to build its 2G network, Jio built its 4G network only in three years.

And to ensure widespread adoption of data, we launched with the lowest data tariffs in the world… and made voice services completely free for Jio users.

Second, let me talk about devices…

Before Jio… over half a billion Indians were left out of the digital movement because they couldn’t afford smartphones and had to make do with 2G feature phones.

Our young and talented Jio engineers rose to the challenge of designing the world’s ultra-affordable breakthrough device called the JioPhone.

That provided a window to the world of limitless possibilities for over 100 million Indians in less than a year.

Third, let me now talk about digital applications and solutions.

Right from day one, Jio offered a bouquet of mobile applications and solutions that offered our customers rich content… spanning Live TV, Movies, Music, News, Magazines… in addition to other apps that addressed collaboration, financial services, payments and so on.

When we combined digital connectivity, digital devices and digital applications and solutions … the results were amazing.

Adding customers at a mind-boggling rate of seven customers every second, Jio garnered 100 million customs in just 170 days of its launch.

And India’s monthly consumption went up from 0.2 billion GB to 1.2 billion GB… a growth of 600%... and data consumption has been multiplying ever since.

Today, India consumes over 6 exabytes of data every month… more than 30 times pre-Jio levels, just four years ago.

We have gone from 155th in the world to number ONE in mobile data consumption… in JUST FOUR years.

The Jio movement shattered the widely held belief that India is not ready to adopt advanced technologies.

Today, I can say with utmost confidence that India will play a leading role in the Fourth Industrial Revolution.

To further extend our global leadership in connectivity, Jio is now rolling out a high-speed, low-latency optic fiber network to more than 50 million homes and premises across 2000 towns and cities in India.

Simultaneously, we are preparing for rolling out 5G services across India.

And Jio Platforms, our digital solutions arm with its growing portfolio of over 20 start-up has built significant capabilities in areas like Cloud and Edge Computing, Big Data Analytics, AI & Machine Learning, Blockchain, AR/ VR and IoT.

Using these technologies, Jio Platforms is in the process of creating compelling solutions for multiple industry verticals and ecosystems spanning Telecom, Media and Entertainment, New Commerce, Financial Services, Education, Healthcare and Agriculture.

We believe that these will have a transformative effect on the social, economic and full development of India.

This is just the beginning for India.

Each of these solutions, once perfected in India and proven at India-scale will be well positioned to address similar needs in other parts of the world.

Clearly, exciting times lie ahead for India and Indians.

Friends,

The Fourth Industrial Revolution has presented us a unique opportunity to create unprecedented value and prosperity for everyone in all spheres of life.

We must invest in building next-generation technology assets.

We must root out inefficiencies across the digital physical ecosystem.

We must break silos and forge winning partnerships.

Only then can we build and sustain a truly digital society.

Jio has been founded on these very values.It has been conceived not as a business, but as a digital movement.

It is on a mission of making Digital Life a reality for 1.3 billion Indians,

It is on a mission of creating digital platforms upon which 1.3 billion dreams will thrive and flourish.

It is committed to playing a leading role in India's transformation into a DIGITAL SOCIETY and one of the leading digital economies in the world.

It will continue to dream big, and march towards its goals with audacity and fervour.

Because… for those who dare to dream, there is a whole new world to win.

Thank you very much ladies & gentlemen and my warmest wishes for a productive virtual conference ahead.