AI is like modern-day Akshay Patra from the Mahabharata, says Mukesh Ambani at AI Summit

India AI Impact Summit 2026: Mukesh Ambani, Chairman & Managing Director of Reliance Industries, likened artificial intelligence to Akshay Patra from the Mahabharata epic. It is not just another technology, said Ambani.

Speaking at the India AI Impact Summit 2026, Ambani said, “Artificial Intelligence is not just another technology. For the first time, humans are creating human-like systems that can learn, speak, analyse, move, and produce autonomously. AI is the mantra that powers every yantra or every machine and system to work faster, better, and smarter. I see AI as a modern-day Akshay Patra, the legendary vessel in the Mahabharat that provided endless nourishment to all. Likewise, AI offers limitless augmentation in knowledge, efficiency, and productivity.”

He said we are only at the dawn of the AI era, and the best of AI is yet to come. He said the availability and reach of AI is indeed a concern. The question arises if AI should be concentrated in the hands of a few or should it be democratised. “Our polarised world stands at a fork. One path has led to a situation where AI is scarce and expensive, compute is concentrated, data is controlled, and capability is locked behind barriers of capital and geography in the global north. In this dismal scenario, inequality widens between nations within societies and across generations. But there’s another path where AI is available to all,” he said.

Ambani said that Reliance Jio will invest Rs 10 lakh crore over the next seven years towards AI. He said that Jio will also make AI widely affordable like it had done for internet data. 

“Jio has already started building AI applications for India’s most pressing challenges in inclusive development,” he said.

Ambani called on everyone to pledge to combine intelligence with empathy and build a better future for all using AI.