‘Definitely pursue engineering degree’: Reliance Jio’s Akash Ambani on what he would've done differently in college

Reliance Jio Infocomm chairman, Akash Ambani, while addressing the students at the Indian Institute of Technology-Bombay, humorously admitted that if given a chance to redo his college years, he would “Definitely try to pursue an engineering degree.”

Reflecting on his time at Brown University, Ambani said, “I was very fortunate to have a very good college experience. From my perspective, college is when I look back at it, college is the best time of your life, there’s no doubt about it.”

However, he did express some regrets about his approach to learning during his college years. “The couple of things I would do probably differently is I would learn from my classes, but I would learn from my classmates even more. That is something I was not very focused on,” he confessed.

Ambani, who spent his college years in America, away from home for the first time, admitted that he was primarily focused on academic achievement. “So, as a good Indian student, you want to be at the top of your class but that is something I would focus on more,” he said.

He emphasized the importance of a balanced college experience, stating, “I would look at the college experience as a wholesome experience. The educational experience of college is also important but the social experience of college is as important as that.”

In retrospect, Ambani expressed that he would approach his college years differently, placing equal emphasis on both the educational and social aspects of the experience.

Reliance Jio's AI move

During the Techfest gathering, Akash Ambani also spoke about the company's collaboration with IIT-Bombay in building 'Bharat GPT'.  During his address at the institute's annual Techfest, Ambani also hinted at the introduction of a new operating system specifically designed for televisions.

The partnership between Reliance Jio and IIT Bombay dates back to 2014, and this new venture is part of what Ambani described as the 'ecosystem of development' for the upcoming 'Jio 2.0' phase. Ambani's vision focuses on the transformative potential of large language models and generative AI, which he believes will revolutionize various products and services. He emphasised Reliance Jio's commitment to integrating AI both vertically within the organization and horizontally across all its sectors.

Reliance Jio plans to expand its offerings in areas like media, communication, commerce, and devices. Ambani expressed particular optimism about 5G private networks, envisioning a future where enterprises of any size can access a 5G stack.

Ambani sees India as a potential global hub for innovation over the next decade, contributing to its goal of becoming a $6 trillion economy. He stressed the universal impact of AI across all sectors of society and industry. 

Read more: Reliance Jio, IIT Bombay to collaborate to launch 'Bharat GPT', says Akash Ambani

Also read: 'My father didn't believe...': Jio's Akash Ambani on Mukesh Ambani's reaction when he got invitation to speak at IIT Bombay