Elon Musk and Mukesh Ambani’s feud over Starlink

The Hindu – International

You are logged in

Loading…

You don’t have any Active Subscription.

Subscribed with another email? Logout and Login with that one.

Your active subscription(s)

Account subscription benefits alongside Premium Stories, Editorials,
Opinions and more. Unlock these with Subscription

Products you’ve access to

Additional Subscription Benefits

Account Settings

Need help with your subscription?

Weather News October 13, 2026 e-Paper

The View From India
Looking at World Affairs from the Indian perspective.

First Day First Show
News and reviews from the world of cinema and streaming.

Today's Cache
Your download of the top 5 technology stories of the day.

Science For All
The weekly newsletter from science writers takes the jargon out of science and puts the fun in!

Data Point
Decoding the headlines with facts, figures, and numbers

THEdge
At the cutting edge of education and careers

Health Matters
Ramya Kannan writes to you on getting to good health, and staying there

Gender Agenda
Stories from beyond the binary.

The Hindu On Books
Books of the week, reviews, excerpts, new titles and features.

Weather News October 13, 2026 e-Paper

Updated – October 13, 2026 11:05 am IST

Elon Musk [left] mockingly referred to Mukesh Ambani as the Prime Minister of India and implied that he controlled India’s government [File Photo]
| Photo Credit: AP

SpaceX owner Elon Musk has never shied away from starting a social media spat, be it with his own family members or U.S. President Donald Trump.

Mr. Musk has now taken aim at India’s billionaire Mukesh Ambani, accusing the chairman and managing director of Reliance Industries of being the real “boss” of India, and playing a role in keeping Starlink’s satellite internet out of the Indian market to favour Jio.

On October 9, Mr. Musk posted on X a mockingly subservient tweet addressed to “Prime Minister Ambani,” apologising for “not realising that you are the real boss of India,” and accused him of wanting to maintain his “monopolistic exploitation of the great people of India,” before asking him for permission to allow Starlink to compete in the market. Mr. Musk claimed that Starlink would help close internet connectivity gaps across the country and could help save lives during natural disasters.

Critics of Mr. Musk were infuriated by what they felt was the undermining of Prime Minister Narendra Modi, as well as the accusation that India’s government is under Mr. Ambani’s influence. Others flagged that the price of Starlink’s service, both hardware and subscriptions, was many times more than the services offered by India-based internet service providers.

On October 11, Mr. Musk posted that competition would benefit Indian customers by giving them more choices and that prices would be adjusted accordingly.

“Ambani’s profits will be lower, but he is not going out of business. And, obviously, if Starlink is too expensive in India, no one will buy it, so SpaceX will need to make pricing affordable,” stated Mr. Musk.

Mr. Musk claimed that Starlink has not been licensed in India, in spite of spending five years complying with the government laws and requirements.

In March 2025, SpaceX announced that it had partnered with Jio Platforms to offer Starlink broadband internet service to customers in India, subject to SpaceX receiving separate authorisations to offer Starlink in India. (A similar agreement was also signed with Bharti Airtel.)

Under the 2025 agreement, the two companies were set to explore service collaborations so Jio Platforms would make Starlink solutions available through its own retail channels.

It is unclear whether that agreement will hold after Mr. Musk’s gibe against Mr. Ambani and the Indian government.

Apart from the deals between the two companies, SpaceX has a Global Mobile Personal Communications by Satellite (GMPCS) authorisation from the Department of Telecommunications (DoT), The Hindu reported this month, but security clearances are pending.

Similarly, ANI reported that licensing was complete for Starlink, Reliance Jio Satcom, and Eutelsat OneWeb, while security checks are in progress.

The timing is crucial as Jio Platforms is preparing for an initial public offering (IPO), which is expected to take place later this month, per media reports; a company at this stage likely prefers a stable regulatory environment and positive media coverage.

A world-famous billionaire attacking an IPO-bound company by accusing it of undermining India’s market sovereignty could make the situation tenuous. Mr. Musk’s intimacy with the White House could potentially escalate the online spat.

Mr. Trump has in the past threatened penalties when other countries — such as Australia and the UK — slowed the foreign operations of U.S. tech giants.

Another factor to consider is the ongoing protest against the Chief Election Commissioner Gyanesh Kumar over allegations of irregularities in the electoral rolls vetting process. Delhi residents have been affected by one of the largest internet shutdowns in the capital’s history.

By contrast, Starlink has been used to access the internet during times of war and civil unrest, such as (legally) during Ukraine’s defence against Russian invasion, and Iran’s anti-government protests (illegally). For the Indian government, ensuring that all telecom companies comply with its internet blackouts is a serious priority.

Mr. Musk has stressed that Starlink beams are turned off over India, and that illegal use is not possible.

For the time being, the Starlink app remains available for download in the country, advertising a starting price of $55 per month for 100Mbps and unlimited data.

Meanwhile, the Indian government denied it allowed monopolies to form in any sector.

Published – October 13, 2026 10:35 am IST

technology (general)

/

The Hindu Explains

/

Twitter

/

India

/

USA

Terms & conditions | Institutional Subscriber

Comments have to be in English, and in full sentences. They cannot be abusive or personal. Please abide by our community guidelines for posting your comments.

We have migrated to a new commenting platform. If you are already a registered user of The Hindu and logged in, you may continue to engage with our articles. If you do not have an account please register and login to post comments. Users can access their older comments by logging into their accounts on Vuukle.

Fonte: The Hindu – International