RIL AGM Highlights: Mukesh Ambani Announces Google-Jio Deal, 5G Plans And JioGlass

Mukesh Ambani is addressing RIL’s shareholders at the 43rd AGM with all board members present via video conferencing.

Due to unforeseen circumstances in energy market, Aramco deal has not progressed as planned, Ambani said. The company remains committed to our long standing relationship with Aramco, he said.

• Approaching NCLT to spin off our O2C business in a separate subsidiary
• All manufacturing facilities in O2C business continue to operate with over 90% capacity utilisation
• Global companies have approached Reliance for investing in its O2C business

"We will induct global partners and investors in Reliance Retail in the next few quarters," Ambani said at Reliance Industries annual general meeting. Reliance Retail has already started pilots of its ecommerce venture.

"We have successfully piloted JioMart grocery model with kirana partners. The beta version of JioMart grocery platform is being piloted in 200 cities. Daily orders have crossed 2.5 lakh, and the number is growing each day," Ambani said.

More than two-thirds of Reliance Retails' nearly 12,000 stores are operated in Tier II, Tier III and Tier IV towns. "It sources over 80 per cent of fruits and vegetable directly from farmers," he said.

• Reliance Retail fastest growing retailer in the world
• Last 5 years growth in retail business positions RIL retail well for future growth
• Will be the first Farm-To-Home at scale globally
• Accelerating the rollout of JioMart
• Have received strong interest from strategic and financial investors for investing in Reliance Retail
• Will induct investors in Reliance retail over the next few quarters

• Google's investment in Jio is the first and biggest of the Google for India Digitisation Fund.
• Never been more hopeful for India's future.

This a key chapter of the $10 billion Google for India Digitisation Fund announced earlier this week, he said.

Richest Indian Mukesh Ambani on Wednesday announced his group's digital arm Jio developing a homegrown 5G telecom solution.

"Jio has designed and developed a complete 5G solution from scratch. It will be ready for trials as soon as 5G spectrum is available and can be ready for field deployment next year," Ambani said at Reliance Industries' annual general meeting.

Jio's global-scale 4G and fibre network is powered by several core software technologies and components. "It is this capability and know-how that positions Jio on the cutting edge of another exciting frontier 5G," he said.

Jio Platforms, with over 20 startup partners, has built world-class capabilities in technologies such as 4G, 5G, Cloud computing, Devices and OS, Big Data, AI, AR/VR, Blockchain, Natural Language Understanding and Computer Vision, he said.

"Using these technologies, we can create compelling solutions across multiple industry verticals like media, financial services, new commerce, education, healthcare, agriculture, smart cities, smart manufacturing & smart mobility," he said, adding Jio Platforms is conceived with vision of developing original, captive intellectual property, using which we can demonstrate transformative power of technology across multiple ecosystems first in India, and then rest of world.

Richest Indian Mukesh Ambani on Wednesday said India's first cloud-based video conferencing app JioMeet has seen 5 million downloads within days of its launch.

Reliance Industries earlier this week launched JioMeet video conferencing app with unlimited free calling, which is being seen as rate war on rival Zoom.

JioMeet video conferencing app is available across Android, iOS, Windows, macOS and web.

Addressing the company's 43rd annual general meeting, Ambani said JioMeet has seen 5 million downloads by users within days of its launch.

Jio Platforms presented its JioGlass technology meant for virtual meetings through holographic video calls.

Jio Platforms has built up significant technologies with 20 startup partners and is now inviting other startups for the same, Ambani said.

Jio Platforms will create a significant source of revenue from both digital and global markets, he added.

In the next three years, Reliance Jio will connect 500 million customers and over 50 million homes and businesses, Ambani said.

• JioFibre already connected to over 1 million and we look to add million more in coming months.
• Jio has created a complete 5G roadmap.
• Jio Platforms would be well-positioned to export 5G solutions post India rollout.

Google will invest Rs 33,737 crore for 7.7 percent stake in Jio Platforms, said Mukesh Ambani announcing the U.S. tech major’s strategic partnership with the company. This makes Google the 13th investor roped in by India’s largest company for Jio Platforms.

• Google is investing at an equity valuation of Rs. 4.36 lakh crore.
• Google and Jio will develop an Android-based smartphone operating system.
• Raised cumulative Rs 2,12,809 crore via rights, Jio Patforms and British Petroleum
• This capital raise is significantly in excess of our net debt
• Our target for capital raise is complete
• Jio is the undisputed leader in India with the customer base and largest consumption of data

• RIL is the Indian company to exceed market cap of $150 billion and Ebitda of Rs 100,000 crore.
• Five years ago all Ebitdawas from energy and chemical business. Today 35% is from consumer business.
• We have fulfilled the promise of net debt free. We have raised a record amount of capital
• RIL continues to be India’s Largest exporter at over Rs 2 lakh crore.

The corona crisis is the most disruptive crisis on modern history, said chairman and managing director Mukesh Ambani, in the opening statement of the AGM. However, he said he has no doubt India and the world will progress faster and better after the crisis.

He went on to give the example of JioMeet - the tech being used to connect with the company directors for the AGM - saying it now has over 5 million users.

As investors lauded the company’s decisions, RIL earlier this month became India’s most valued firm with a market cap of more than Rs 12 lakh crore. That’s followed by Tata Consultancy Services Ltd. and HDFC Bank Ltd.

The share price touched an all-time high of Rs 1,947.70 on Monday. This has helped Ambani overtake global investors and entrepreneurs like Warren Buffet, Elon Musk and Google’s founders to become the world’s sixth-richest man.

Mukesh Ambani will face shareholders at Reliance Industries Ltd.'s 43rd annual general meeting on Wednesday at 1 p.m. through video conferencing. And when he addresses them, Asia’s richest man would have met most of his promises.

The oil-to-telecom conglomerate technically turned net-debt-free months ahead of its March 2021 target, though the actual impact on the balance sheet will be visible next fiscal. That came mainly on the back of a flurry of deals for Jio Platforms and a partnership with BP Plc. The company also announced its largest-ever rights issue in nearly three decades as it intends to raise Rs 53,125 crore by issuing news shares.