Google to invest $4.5 billion in Jio Platforms

Under the latest partnership, Google will buy 7.7 per cent equity stake in Reliance Jio.

Tech giant Google is set to buy stake in Reliance Industries' digital unit Jio Platforms for $4.5 billion after Jio Platform announced multiple deals with global investors in the last two months. Under the latest partnership, Google will buy 7.7 per cent equity stake in Reliance Jio, RIL Chairman Mukesh Ambani said on Wednesday.

Jio has raised over $20.6 billion in the past four months from 13 investors by selling about 33 per cent stake in the firm. The latest investment by Google values Jio Platforms at $58 billion.

As a part of the strategic announcement, Google and Jio Platforms will work on a customised version of Android operating system to develop low-cost, entry-level smartphones to serve the next hundreds of millions of users, said Ambani.

Sundar Pichai, Chief executive, Google, said: “Getting technology into the hand of more people is a big mission at Google. Together we are excited to rethink, from the ground up, how millions of users in India can become owners of smartphones. This effort will unlock new opportunities, further power the vibrant ecosystem of applications and push innovation to drive growth for the new Indian economy.