Musk Accuses Ambani as Starlink Awaits India Approval

Elon Musk publicly accused Reliance Industries chairman Mukesh Ambani of wanting to protect market dominance as Starlink seeks approval to begin satellite internet service in India, while Indian officials rejected claims that the company was being treated unfairly. In posts on X on October 9, Musk sarcastically addressed Ambani as “Prime Minister Ambani” and “the real boss of India,” then asked whether he would allow Starlink to compete. Musk’s accusation that Ambani prefers to maintain a monopoly is an allegation; the supplied accounts provide no evidence that Ambani or Reliance has obstructed Starlink’s approval process. Musk argued that Starlink could provide internet access in areas with limited or no connectivity, expanding educational opportunities and helping small businesses reach customers. He also said the satellite service could help during natural disasters when other communications systems fail. Those were Musk’s claims about the service’s potential benefits, not evidence that it has launched in India. The Ministry of Communications said Starlink, Reliance Jio’s satellite venture and Eutelsat OneWeb were at broadly the same stage of the approval process.