Elon Musk Takes Aim at Mukesh Ambani Over Starlink's Entry into India

Sarcastic Attack Targets Reliance Chairman

SpaceX founder Elon Musk publicly addressed Mukesh Ambani, the billionaire chairman of India’s conglomerate Reliance Industries, in a series of pointed posts on the social media platform X.

Musk sarcastically referred to Ambani as “Prime Minister Ambani,” writing: “Please accept my humble apologies for not realizing that you are the real boss of India. Naturally, you would prefer to maintain your monopolistic exploitation of the great people of India, but would you nonetheless consider allowing Starlink to [operate]?”

Emphasizing Lifesaving Capabilities in Disaster Scenarios

Musk went on to highlight the critical role satellite internet plays during emergencies. He argued that Starlink has repeatedly proved vital during natural disasters worldwide when conventional communication networks collapse, stating that permitting the service would help protect lives across India.

The direct confrontation unfolds amid ongoing debates over how India should allocate satellite spectrum. While SpaceX and international operators have advocated for administrative spectrum allocation in line with global norms, Ambani’s telecom unit, Reliance Jio, has pushed for a competitive bidding auction to ensure a level playing field with terrestrial mobile operators.