A college assignment that couldn’t be uploaded: Isha Ambani’s tells story of genesis of Jio

New Delhi: A failed attempt to upload a college assignment in 2009–10 became the unlikely starting point for the idea that eventually transformed India’s digital landscape, Isha Ambani revealed on Thursday.

Speaking at a press conference ahead of Jio Platforms’ initial public offering (IPO), Isha recounted how a frustrating internet experience during a family break in Mumbai sparked a larger conversation about India’s digital connectivity.

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At the time, Isha and her twin brother, Akash Ambani, were studying in the United States and had returned home for a break. When Isha tried to submit an assignment online, the internet failed, leaving her unable to complete the submission.

“I tried to submit the assignment, but unfortunately, the internet did not work, and I couldn’t submit it,” she recalled.

What began as a personal inconvenience soon led to deeper discussions about why India lacked the kind of reliable connectivity they had experienced in the West.

“Why was it that we didn’t have the same type of connectivity that we enjoyed in the West?” Isha said, describing the question that helped shape their thinking.

Akash, who is now the managing director of Jio Platforms, believed the solution lay in building a digital technology platform company that could address the country’s connectivity challenges.

That vision became reality in 2016, when Jio launched its services. A decade later, the company is preparing for a landmark IPO that could raise approximately Rs 30,213 crore at the upper end of its price band, making it India’s largest public offering to date.

From a Failed Upload to a Landmark IPO

Isha described Jio’s growth as a reflection of Reliance’s broader business philosophy: pursuing ideas with a long-term vision, achieving scale capable of reshaping industry economics, and maintaining disciplined execution.

She also paid tribute to her grandfather, Dhirubhai Ambani, who took Reliance Industries public in 1977. According to Isha, he viewed the company as more than a business—it was a promise that every Indian should have a share in the country’s growth and prosperity.

“Three generations later,” she said, she, Akash and their brother Anant Ambani continue to follow the family’s guiding principle: “Growth is life.”

Jio’s Rs 30,213 Crore IPO: Key Details

Jio Platforms has set a price band of Rs 1,065 to Rs 1,119 per share for its IPO, involving up to 27 crore new shares, equivalent to around 3 per cent of its existing capital. The offering does not include an offer-for-sale component.

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At the upper end of the price band, the issue would raise approximately Rs 30,213 crore, surpassing Hyundai Motor India’s Rs 27,870 crore IPO in October 2024.

The pricing implies a market valuation of around Rs 10.3 lakh crore, below the roughly Rs 11 lakh crore valuation the company had reportedly been targeting earlier.

Bidding for the IPO is scheduled to run from October 21 to 23, with anchor investor bidding on October 19. The shares are expected to list on October 28.

According to the red herring prospectus dated October 14, the proceeds will be used primarily to prepay borrowings of Reliance Jio Infocomm, Jio’s telecom subsidiary, along with general corporate purposes.

From one failed college assignment to a multibillion-rupee public offering, Isha’s recollection highlights how a seemingly ordinary frustration helped inspire a vision that would go on to reshape India’s digital connectivity.

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