Ambani aims to infuse AI into every call, app, and home

As India seeks a homegrown contender in the global AI race, billionaire Mukesh Ambani is positioning Reliance Industries as the national champion, launching AI services for phone calls, mobile apps, and smart homes.

During its annual shareholder meeting on Friday, the Mumbai-based conglomerate unveiled Jio Call Agent, an AI assistant that can join calls to transcribe conversations, generate summaries, and handle tasks like booking cabs, ordering food, and making reservations. Activated by saying "Hey Jio," the service is slated to launch later this year for Jio's over 500 million users.

By embedding the service directly into its telecom network instead of offering a standalone app, Jio bets that AI assistance can become a native call feature. This approach may reduce consumer reliance on third-party call-assistant apps and give Reliance a significant distribution edge in an increasingly crowded AI market.

Reliance also introduced an AI-powered version of its MyJio app that can perform tasks on users' behalf — from activating eSIMs to selecting roaming plans — through natural-language requests. Additionally, the company unveiled TeleFrame, a home display that uses AI agents to proactively surface information and recommendations, such as weather alerts, schedules, and household reminders. This product mirrors a broader industry trend toward ambient AI assistants for the home, an area being explored by companies like Amazon and Google.

Jio TeleFrameImage Credit:Jio

These announcements mark the next phase of Reliance's AI ambitions as India works to build domestic capabilities in a domain largely dominated by U.S. and Chinese tech firms. The push follows last year's launch of Reliance Intelligence, through which the conglomerate aims to develop AI infrastructure and services for consumers, businesses, and governments, including applications supporting 22 Indian languages.

"India should not be just a consumer of AI built elsewhere. It must become a creator, adopter, and global leader in AI," said the 69-year-old Ambani.

Reliance has been accelerating its AI ambitions through partnerships with Google, Meta, and Nvidia. Earlier this year, the company announced plans to invest $110 billion in AI infrastructure, positioning itself as a major player in India's emerging AI ecosystem.

At the shareholder meeting, Reliance also launched a suite of AI services for healthcare, education, agriculture, and small businesses. The products — branded JioHealthIQ, JioLearnIQ, JioKrishiIQ, and AI Vyapar — are designed to work across multiple Indian languages and address local needs, the company said.

The shareholder meeting also delivered a major update for investors awaiting Jio's stock market debut. According to a stock exchange filing, Ambani said Jio Platforms' board had approved a draft prospectus for an IPO that would include a fresh issue of up to 270 million shares.

The announcements also raise questions about how Reliance will manage user data as it expands AI services across phone calls, mobile apps, and connected homes. While the company stated that the services would operate with user consent, it did not clarify whether data generated through the products could be used to train AI models or shared with technology partners.

Reliance's AI ambitions come at a time when Indian companies remain heavily dependent on foreign AI models and cloud providers. Recent restrictions on access to some of Anthropic's latest models have highlighted that dependency, showing how overseas decisions can impact startups and businesses building AI products in India — the kind of supply-chain risk that is pushing Indian conglomerates toward building their own stack rather than renting someone else's.

Last week, Reliance announced a collaboration with Meta to set up an AI data center in the western state of Gujarat, building on Meta's earlier investment in Jio Platforms and a joint venture launched last year to develop AI solutions for enterprise customers in India and overseas markets.

Reliance is not alone in pursuing AI opportunities. Tata Consultancy Services, Infosys, and rival Adani Group have also expanded their AI initiatives and partnerships with global players like Anthropic, Google, and OpenAI, as India's largest corporations compete for a leading role in the country's AI future.

Nonetheless, the stakes are particularly high for Reliance; it is preparing Jio for a long-awaited stock market debut and needs new growth drivers, with the conglomerate's shares down about 17% this year.