Mukesh Ambani at the event, flanked by steel tycoon Lakshmi Mittal and Financial Times editor Lionel Barber.

LONDON: Billionaire Mukesh Ambani 's telecom venture Jio , which catapulted India as the world's largest mobile broadband data consuming nation in less than two years, was first seeded by his daughter, Isha, in 2011.This was revealed by Ambani, the richest Indian, in his acceptance speech last night after his oil-to-telecom conglomerate, Reliance Industries was presented with the 'Drivers of Change' award at the Financial Times ArcelorMittal Boldness in Business Awards.Since the idea first cropped up, Reliance, which owns and operates the world's largest single location refinery complex at Jamnagar in Gujarat, has spent more than USD 31 billion to break into India's mobile-phone market. The 2016 upstart, called Jio, dislodged rivals and has emerged as the nation's No. 4 carrier by offering call services free for life and data transmission at dirt cheap rates.Jio is also gearing up for newer data-heavy services that can connect homes, businesses, and cars to the internet.Ambani said with super-abundant youthful talent, India is poised to become the third largest economy in the world by 2028 -- within just a single decade."The idea of Jio was first seeded by my daughter, Isha, in 2011. She was a student at Yale (in the US) and was home for holidays. She wanted to submit some coursework - and she said, 'Dad, the internet in our house sucks'," he recalled.Ambani said Isha's twin brother, Akash, at that time stated that in the old world, telecom was voice and people made money on calls but in the new world everything is digital."Isha and Akash belong to India's young generation that is far more creative, far more ambitious and far more impatient to become the best in the world. These young Indians convinced me that broadband internet is the defining technology of our age and India cannot be left behind," he said.India at the time was suffering from poor connectivity and a severe scarcity of the most critical digital resource - data. Data was not only scarce, but it was priced artificially high to make it unaffordable to a majority of Indians, he said.Jio transformed all of this by making data abundant and affordable and available in every part of the country."We launched Jio in September 2016. And today Jio has already become the biggest game changer in India," he said.Ambani said while the United States pioneered 1G mobile network, Europe ushered in 2G, and China leapfrogged with 3G, Jio has created the largest greenfield 4G LTE-only data network in the world."This will make India a leader in 4G in 2019," he said. "It took the combined Indian telecom industry 25 years to build a pan-India 2G network. Jio took just three years to build a 4G LTE network, which is much larger and far more advanced. And it is also 5G-ready today."Jio has made voice-calling free for life and has also made high-quality data available at the lowest price in the world - at almost one-tenth the prices in the US, he said, and the firm acquired more than 100 million customers in just 170 days of launch.This was more than one-and-a-half times the population of the United Kingdom.For the 500 million Indians still using a feature phone and not a smartphone, Jio brought out the "world's most affordable 4G LTE smartphone" that is available for free for use with a deposit of Rs 1,500, he said. "The result has been stunning: 3 lakh to 5 lakh Indians are daily migrating to Jio Phone. And for the same Rs 200-300, they benefit through access to the high-speed internet with their existing voice needs are completely free."As the internet becomes accessible to all Indians, the country will be among the first to graduate to the Internet of Everything, he said."Within the next few years, Jio will empower the equivalent of two-thirds of Europe's population to enjoy world-class digital services in India," he said, adding because of Jio, India has jumped from the rank of 155 to number one in the world in mobile broadband data consumption in less than two years."Jio has already grown to be the biggest start-up in India's history," he said.The previous honorees for the 'Drivers of Change' award include DeepMind Technologies (2016), FANUC (2015), HBO (2014), Alibaba (2013), MONDRAGON Corporation (2012), Amazon (2011), Apple (2010), Fiat (2009) and Ryanair (2008). RIL won it for its "exceptional commitment to innovation-led, exponential growth within the areas of hydrocarbon exploration and production, petroleum refining and marketing, petrochemicals, retail and 4G digital services."Stating that his late father Dhirubhai Ambani was the original 'Driver of Change' in India's business history, he said the legendary industrialist founded Reliance Industries Ltd (RIL) in 1966 with a meager capital of Rs 1,000 (about USD 130 at that time).RIL, which today is an over USD 50 billion group, has doubled shareholder money every two-and-half years since its initial public offering (IPO) in 1977, he said. "During the same period, Reliance has contributed more to India's national wealth than any other business group."My good friend Laxmi Mittal,Mr Lionel Barber,Members of the Jury,Fellow winners,Ladies and Gentlemen,Good evening.My wife Nita and I are delighted to be with all of you in this enchanting building of the Royal Institute of British Architects.My sincere thanks to the Financial Times and Arcelor-Mittal for this honor which I receive with utmost humility.This recognition rightfully belongs to my over 100,000 young colleagues of Jio, the most powerful Driver of Change in India today.And I respectfully dedicate it to the memory of my father Dhirubhai Ambani, the founder of Reliance Industries Ltd.He was the original Driver of Change in India’s business history.Nearly half a century ago, long before India embraced liberalization and globalization, he believed that the Indian private sector had the potential to make India a global economic power.His belief has now come true.My father founded Reliance in 1966 with one just employee and with a meagre capital of only Rs 1000, or about USD 130 at that time.Even then, his dream was to build Reliance as a world-class and world-scale Indian business conglomerate.He realised his dream in his own lifetime.Furthermore, he democratized equity culture in India by making millions of ordinary Indians owners of Reliance.It is a matter of great pride for me that, since Reliance’s IPO in 1977, our shareholders’ money has doubled every two and a half years, for the last 40 years.During the same period, Reliance has contributed more to India’s national wealth than any other business group.Friends,Our mission and passion at Reliance is to make India prosperous….And to make the life of every Indian better.Towards this end, Reliance has always been investing in young Indian talent, in the best of technology from around the world, and in game-changing businesses of the future.Let me now tell you the story of how Jio was conceived.The idea of Jio was first seeded by my daughter, Isha, in 2011.She was a student at Yale and was home for holidays.She wanted to submit some coursework – and she said, “Dad, the internet in our house sucks”.My son Akash said “Dad, your generation doesn’t get it. In the old world, telecom was voice – and you only make money when one person calls and other answers.In our new world, everything is digital. We can do a lot more with a digital network than just talk.”Isha and Akash belong to India’s young generation that is far more creative, far more ambitious and far more impatient to become the best in the world.These young Indians convinced me that broadband internet is the defining technology of our age and India cannot be left behind.However, India at the time was suffering from poor connectivity and severe scarcity of the most critical digital resource – Data.Data is the Oxygen of Digital Life.Data was not only scarce, but it was priced artificially high to make it unaffordable to a majority of Indians.Which is why, we, at Jio resolved to re-imagine, re-purpose and transform the digital services landscape in India.Jio is the world’s first all IP Network to cater to Digital Life for all Indians – making Data abundant and affordable and available in every part of the country – from big cities to remote villages.We launched Jio in September 2016.And today Jio has already become the biggest game changer in India.How?Let me give you five snapshots:First:As all of you know, the United States pioneered 1G mobile network.Europe ushered in 2G, and China leapfrogged with 3G.But Jio has created the largest GREENFIELD, ONLY 4G LTE DATA NETWORK in the world.This will make India a leader in 4G in 2019.It took the combined Indian telecom industry 25 years to build a pan-India 2G network…Jio took just three years to build a 4G LTE network, which is much LARGER and FAR MORE ADVANCED.And it is also 5G-ready TODAY.Now, friends, the SECOND example of digital empowerment of the Indian masses.In less than 18 months of its launch, Jio has enabled 99 % of India’s 1.3 billion population to zip forward from the past to the future.Furthermore, Jio has made VOICE SERVICES free FOREVER, from anywhere to anywhere in India, on our network.Jio has also made high quality data available at the lowest price in the world - at almost one-tenth the prices in USA.Third:When you treat the customer as King by providing them world-class quality with world-beating affordability, the response is predictably positive.Jio was able to acquire MORE THAN 100 MILLION CUSTOMERS in just 170 days after its launch…To put this in perspective, Jio created a customer base that is more than ONE AND A HALF times the population of United Kingdom in less than six months.This is unprecedented for any technology service anywhere in the world.Now, the Fourth snapshot.500 million Indians still use a feature phone and not a smart phone and spend Rs.200 / Rs.300 per month for their voice services.As a result, they are excluded from the benefits of the Digital Revolution.Therefore, I mandated Jio’s young engineers to innovate the world’s most affordable 4G LTE smart phone.They more than met my expectations.We have called it JIOPhone This is offered free to customers for use with a deposit of Rs.1500.The result has been stunning: 300,000 to 500,000 Indians are daily migrating to JIO Phone.And for the same Rs. 200 / Rs. 300, they benefit through access to high-speed internet with their existing voice needs are completely free.Again, to put it in perspective…Within the next few years, Jio will empower the equivalent of two-thirds of Europe’s population to enjoy a world-class digital services in India.And FIFTH….Thanks to Jio, India has jumped from the rank of 155 to Number ONE in the world in mobile broadband data consumption in less than two years!Friends,Jio has already grown to be the biggest start-up in India’s history.But what I am most proud of is that, through all these achievements, Jio promises to bring enormous societal value.For example, it can help end FINANCIAL and DIGITAL EXCLUSION of the poorest section in our society….With Jio, an Indian farmer, even in the remotest village of India, now has the same access to digital learning, e-Banking, e-Commerce, e-Governance, e-Healthcare, and real-time Information that is enjoyed by those in cities like Mumbai or Delhi.Friends,I want to thank Nita, my life-partner for her steadfast support in all these initiatives.In a short span of six years, Nita has made Reliance Foundation the largest philanthropic organisation in India.Its activities span developmental efforts in agriculture and rural development, healthcare, education, sports, women’s empowerment, and promotion of India’s heritage of arts and culture.There is another potential transformation very close to Nita’s & my heart.India has over 220 million children in our schools and colleges.Our future depends on educating and skilling them to be globally competitive.Jio is currently in the process of connecting nearly 1.9 million schools and over 58,000 universities across India.Based on this connectivity, Jio and Reliance Foundation is committed to transform education in India.In the coming years, Nita and I will devote our time, resources and efforts to make our utmost contribution to realize the full potential of India’s next generation.Friends,Jio is dedicated to making India’s digital dreams a reality.In India we have the unmatched advantage of demography.And Demography is Destiny.India has 1.3 billion dreamers for a better life.We have a young and energetic workforce… 63% of our population is below 35 years of age… in the prime of their life.With such super-abundant youthful talent, India is poised to become the third largest economy in the world by 2028 - within just a single decade.The emerging New India offers global businesses unlimited prospects to prosper from investing in India’s growth phenomenon.I will safely predict that, from now on, every new generation of Indians will live a better life than the previous generation.As the internet becomes accessible to all Indians, I believe we will be among the first to graduate to the Internet of Everything.The Internet of Communication, Content and Commerce…But I believe that we have only scratched the surface.In the coming years, I can imagine…An Internet of Intelligence… that powers next-generation smart services.An Internet of Energy… with smart sensors, smart grids and distributed generation that lays the foundation for our nation’s energy security.An Internet of Trust... that creates the framework for distributed transactions and contracts without intermediaries.An Internet of Empathy – that harmonizes value creation with life-sustaining human and ethical values.I believe that India is well positioned to combine its demographic, technological, entrepreneurial and civilizational strengths to seize this opportunity….and create a bright and prosperous future for our nation.Thank you once again and today’s recognition makes our resolve stronger to make India a Better India, and our world a Better World.Thank you.