CALIFORNIA, Oct 16: Starlink on Monday responded to Reliance Industries Limited’s statement over Elon Musk’s remarks on Indian markets, saying that it has worked closely with the country's regulators with all the requisite government approvals.

In a post on X, Musk’s company said it was ready to “connect India with high-speed internet”.

“We have worked closely with regulators, industry and operators in India for 5+ years, and built a network of dedicated systems, gateways, and other infrastructure all in-country to exclusively serve Indian traffic safely and securely - and all with the requisite government approvals. Starlink is ready to connect India with high-speed internet,” it said.

This comes after Reliance Industries on Friday issued a statement to Musk's recent remarks about the Indian market and its role in Starlink's entry into the country, saying it has never feared competition and that every player must abide by Indian laws and policies.

Nuclear war, AI-enabled bioweapons could wipe out humanity by 2100: Lancet report

LONDON, Oct 12: Nuclear conflict and the malicious use of artificial intelligence (AI), including the development of bioweapons, are among the threats that could potentially lead to human extinction by 2100, according to a report called The Lancet Commission on 21st Century Global Threats to Health, released by the general medical journal.

The study placed these dangers in the highest category of a pyramid ranking hundreds of potential threats to humanity, including diseases, injuries, socioeconomic drivers and other risks. The category comprises threats considered capable of causing human extinction by the end of the century.

The malicious use of AI, particularly its potential role in developing bioweapons, has been identified alongside nuclear conflict as an existential threat. Nuclear conflict could have devastating consequences extending beyond immediate casualties, including the possibility of nuclear famine, while the misuse of AI could introduce new dangers through its application in the development of biological weapons, the study said.

The commission's framework categorises threats according to their potential scale of harm, placing human extinction risks at the top of the pyramid, followed by major catastrophic threats, major risks and causes, and the wider threat landscape.

“We divided hundreds of potential threats (diseases, injuries, socioeconomic drivers, and other threats) into a pyramid of threats with four categories: threats with the potential to lead to human extinction by 2100, major catastrophic threats, major risks and causes, and the wider threat landscape. Threats with extinction potential, which represent the first category of the pyramid, include nuclear conflict with nuclear famine and the malicious use of AI, including bioweapons development,” the report read.

The study distinguished these existential threats from 15 major catastrophic threats that could cause extensive harm to human health and societies. These include air pollution, antimicrobial resistance, childhood malnutrition, climate change, the collapse of development assistance for health, conventional conflict, high alcohol consumption, high blood pressure, income inequality, low educational attainment, naturally occurring pandemics not enabled by AI, obesity, poor mental health, smoking and unhealthy ageing.

Elon Musk asks why Starlink still lacks India licence, gets a reply from Rahul Gandhi

WASHINGTON, Oct 8: Trillionaire Elon Musk on Thursday asked why Starlink was not issued a licence in India yet despite complying with every law for five years. His post received a response from Congress MP Rahul Gandhi.

The exchange came a day after Musk alleged that Starlink was being ‘blocked by certain oligarchs’ in India, an assertion rejected by the government earlier today. In its response, the Centre had said that India's regulatory framework for satellite communication services was “fair and non-discriminatory”.

Musk, the SpaceX founder and CEO, doubled down on his claims on Thursday and said Starlink was licensed in more than 165 countries and had spent five years complying with Indian laws and government requirements. “So why still no license?” he asked. “Is Ambani the real boss of India?” he added.

Leader of Opposition in the Lok Sabha Rahul Gandhi responded to his X post with a cryptic reference to “the other guy”. Gandhi responded to Musk’s post: “Welcome to India, Elon. Wait till you discover the other guy.”

Musk later thanked Gandhi for his response. "Thank you, Rahul. This is indeed troubling," Musk said in response to Gandhi's post.

The remarks come as Musk-owned Starlink awaits regulatory nod to begin commercial operations in India. The company has received a Global Mobile Personal Communications by Satellite (GMPCS) licence from the government but is awaiting security clearance and spectrum assignment before it can begin commercial services.

Elon Musk Claims 'Oligarchs' Stalling Starlink's Entry In India

WASHINGTON, Oct 7: US billionaire Elon Musk has claimed that "certain oligarchs" are blocking Starlink's satellite communication services in India to maintain their monopoly in the country. Musk made the remarks while responding to a post by the DodgeDesigner handle on X about the alleged non-availability of mobile coverage in over 11,000 Indian villages.

"Unfortunately, we are being blocked by certain oligarchs in order to maintain their monopolistic chokehold on the Indian people," Musk posted on X.

"You can guess who they are... This is a crime against the people of India!"

An account operating under the name of DodgeDesigner, which is known for posting information related to Elon Musk and his firms, has alleged, "11,256 of India's listed villages still lacked 4G coverage as of May 2026."

Unfortunately, we are being blocked by certain oligarchs in order to maintain their monopolistic chokehold on the Indian people. You can guess who they are … This is a crime against the people of India!

The account claimed "India needs Starlink" and shared information about telecom connectivity problems in the rural areas of the country.

The development comes hours after a senior official of Musk-led SpaceX announced that the company's satellite communication arm, Starlink, is ready to start services in India.

Speaking at India Mobile Congress 2026, SpaceX's Starlink Business Operations Vice President Lauren Dreyer said the company has made an investment in setting up the required infrastructure to serve the Indian market.

"We've built our Starlink operations specifically for India in recognition of Indian security requirements and other regulations, establishing controls at every layer for India, and keeping Indian user data within India," she said.

The Prime Minister Narendra Modi-led government has granted licenses to three companies, including Starlink, to provide satellite communication services in India. However, the satcom companies need spectrum and security clearance to start their services.

"We've already made the investment and built the existing ground infrastructure here, 20 gateway sites comprising hundreds of antennas, and we've established the operations to be ready to serve India," Dreyer said.

DodgeDesigner posted a clip of Musk's old podcast with Zerodha founder Nithin Kamath, where he talked about starting Starlink operations in India.

"It's been nearly four years since Starlink applied to operate in India, and it is still waiting to launch. The government should grant the remaining approvals as soon as possible so Starlink can bring high-speed internet to India's remote and underserved communities," the post claimed.

Starlink in India would enable high-speed, affordable Internet connectivity for those who can't afford current prices or who don't have a connection at all!

Reposting the video, Musk wrote, "Starlink in India would enable high-speed, affordable Internet connectivity for those who can't afford current prices or who don't have a connection at all!"

India Rejects Elon Musk's 'Starlink Stalled' Claim

NEW DELHI, Oct 7: India has rebutted American billionaire Elon Musk's claim that "certain oligarchs" were blocking Starlink's satellite communication services in India to maintain their monopoly in the country. In response to Musk's remarks, the Ministry of Communications asserted that India has a "fair, non-discriminatory authorisation framework" for all telecommunication services, including satellite communication services such as Starlink.

India has granted GMPCS (global mobile personal communication by satellite) licences to three companies, including Starlink, for operations in the country. Two other companies that have also received it are Bharti-backed Eutelsat OneWeb and Jio Satellite Communications Ltd, a wholly owned subsidiary of Jio Platforms, while Jeff Bezos-owned Amazon Leo is also in contention for a licence.

Explaining the "non-discriminatory" framework that is in place, the ministry said the telecom licences have been granted based on non-geosynchronous satellite orbit-based satellite communications as part of its commitment to enable the provision of satellite communication services in India.

The ministry said that "under the terms and conditions of licence, every such licensee is required to demonstrate compliance with security conditions."

"This is aimed at ensuring that services provided meet various security requirements to ensure the safety of all users and their data. Security assessment as part of this process is currently under way in respect of all three licencees."

According to the Ministry, as and when this process is completed for a licensed entity, it may proceed to the next step of seeking assignment of spectrum.

It's been more than a year since Musk's Starlink secured the necessary licences from the government to operate in India, but the company has yet to receive final approvals from the authorities to launch its services in the country.

The Ministry noted that at present, all three companies that received the GMPCS licences are broadly at the same regulatory stage.

"A post is being circulated in social media regarding the fairness of India's regulatory framework for satellite communication services and suggesting that it is being applied in a discriminatory manner...As such, the suggestion that the framework or its application is unfair or discriminatory is baseless and misconceived," it added.