India’s AI wave is picking up speed and this time, telecom giants are leading it. What began as a race for better data plans has turned into a battle for digital intelligence.
As more users explore artificial intelligence tools, telecom companies are competing to shape how Indians connect, learn, and work in an AI-powered future.
Reliance Jio’s latest move takes the lead. In partnership with Google, Jio is offering free access to Google Gemini Pro for 18 months a package worth ₹35,100 to users aged 18 to 25 on unlimited 5G plans.
The plan includes Gemini 2.5 Pro, 2TB of cloud storage, and access to Google’s newest AI tools. It’s less a data plan and more a youth-focused digital accelerator.
Airtel, meanwhile, is offering Perplexity Pro for a year, showing how telecom plans are shifting from extra data to AI-powered perks.
But beneath these offers lies a bigger question. As Indian users rush to adopt global AI tools, their data continues to train models owned by U.S. tech giants.
The growing reliance on foreign AI platforms underlines the need for India to build its own large-scale AI ecosystem — one that empowers users while protecting national data sovereignty.
