Akash Ambani, managing director of Jio Platforms, a unit of Reliance Industries, said on Tuesday that the company is focusing on its technology, artificial intelligence and cloud sectors in addition to telecom for growth. He said that Jio is not just a telecommunication unit but a technology company. “There is no question for Jio to choose between telecom and technology, because our network is our technology,” Ambani told PTI in an interview ahead of the launch of the country’s biggest-ever initial public offering (IPO) for retail investors. He said the company has developed its own 5G core network, cloud-based radio network and software platform. This network of Jio provides services to 53.33 crore customers. Ambani said that connectivity is our first product on this platform. Digital services, AI and cloud are things that we are now gradually adding.

The country’s largest IPO

Jio Platforms aims to raise Rs. 30,200 crore to be raised, which will take the company’s valuation to around US $ 108 billion. The issue comes at a time when investors are looking at how the country’s largest telco can leverage its vast customer base to drive high-yield revenue through digital services, enterprise technology and artificial intelligence. The reason for this is that now the business expansion is not gaining momentum as before, only because of the increase in the number of customers. The company has also identified satellite connectivity and next-generation 6G technology as future growth areas.

Jio’s share was 67.56 percent

Ambani said Jio’s growth opportunities range from mobile services to home broadband and enterprise digital solutions. Even today, about 26 crore Indians use 2G services in the country, while fixed broadband reaches only about 21 percent of households in the country. He said Jio accounted for 67.56 percent of India’s net fixed-broadband growth in FY 2025-26, while adoption of digital services among the country’s more than 7.9 crore micro, small and medium enterprises (MSMEs) is still less than three percent. Ambani said that our target is to increase the number of customers, strengthen our connection with them and provide more services to every customer. Each Jio customer already uses an average of 43.7 GB of data per month. Fee rates are only part of the bigger story.

Tech Business Expansion

He said the net debt-EBITDA (earnings before tax) ratio was 0.36 times in FY 2025-26 compared to 0.88 times in 2023-24. The offering will provide greater financial scope for investment in 5G, broadband, AI, cloud and enterprise services. Jio is also looking to expand its technology business outside India through partnerships with local operators. Ambani said the company is looking at the possibility of developing an indigenous satellite constellation and a network of ground-based centers to connect remote areas. Along with this, the company is also exploring partnership opportunities with global satellite service providers. The company’s long-term plan includes developing 6G technology with its cloud-based infrastructure in such a way that it can be adopted primarily through software changes rather than building an entire network from scratch.

7,220 patent applications have been filed

Jio is emphasizing on creating a different identity from other companies based on its technical capabilities. The company has so far filed 7,220 patent applications. In addition, it was included among the top 20 companies in the Patent Cooperation Treaty (PCT) global ranking of the World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO) in the year 2025. He said about 45 percent of Jio’s full-time workforce, i.e. 12,477 employees, work in digital products and tech development. Jio also wants to encourage wider participation in the IPO. In this issue to the eligible shareholders of Reliance Industries Rs. 2,500 crore and for eligible employees Rs. 500 crore including a reservation, while at least 35 percent of the net offer is available to retail individual investors.

Google’s AI Pro Plan

He said that my grandfather Dhirubhai Ambani was the person who started the equity culture in India and this offer is aimed at giving families who have been associated with Reliance for generations to participate directly. Jio’s global technology investors, including Google and Meta, are also expected to play a role in the next phase of its expansion. Ambani said Google’s AI Pro plan is being offered to Jio users at no extra cost for 18 months, while Reliance Enterprise Intelligence, a joint venture between Reliance Intelligence and Meta, plans to deliver enterprise AI products to businesses in India. This public issue will open on 21st October and close on 23rd October. Under this issue of new shares around Rs. 30,213 crore is the target to collect. There is no sale of shares (OFS) by existing shareholders. For the issue, the company paid Rs. 1,065 to Rs. 1,119 per share price range has been fixed. At the high end of the price range, Jio is valued at around $108 billion.