Mukesh Ambani, Chairman and Managing Director of Reliance Industries, has reclaimed the position of Asia’s richest person, with an estimated net worth of $88.8 billion according to Forbes' Real-Time Billionaires List. He overtook ByteDance co-founder Zhang Yiming, whose estimated net worth stood at $84 billion.

Ambani's wealth increased after Reliance Industries shares surged nearly 12% on November 2, following the company's strong financial performance for the July–September quarter. The company reported record quarterly revenue, operating earnings and net profit, supported by its oil-to-chemicals, digital services and retail businesses.

Beyond its business operations, the Reliance Group is also associated with education initiatives through Reliance Foundation, a separate philanthropic organisation founded by Nita Mukesh Ambani, who serves as its Founder and Chairperson. The Foundation supports education through scholarships, learning programmes and initiatives that use technology to improve access to education in India.

Reliance Foundation Announces 5,100 Scholarships

For the 2026–27 academic year, Reliance Foundation announced 5,100 scholarships for first-year undergraduate and postgraduate students across India. The programme includes 5,000 undergraduate scholarships and 100 postgraduate scholarships.

Selected undergraduate scholars can receive financial support of up to ₹2 lakh, while postgraduate scholars can receive up to ₹6 lakh during their degree programmes. The scholarships aim to help talented students from different economic backgrounds pursue higher education.

The Foundation also combines financial assistance with mentorship, leadership development and opportunities to become part of a wider scholar community. According to its August 2026 announcement, more than 33,000 students across India had received support through its scholarships.

The application period for the 2026–27 scholarships ran from August 14 to October 5, 2026. Therefore, applications for this academic year's programme have already closed.

ShikshaNext Brings AI into Education

Another major education initiative involving Reliance Foundation is ShikshaNext, a ₹170-crore multi-partner programme launched on February 20, 2026. It aims to improve learning outcomes among children from underserved communities through educational technology and Artificial Intelligence (AI).

The initiative aims to enable more than 13 million children across India to access meaningful technology- and AI-enabled learning opportunities by 2029.

Reliance Foundation and the Gates Foundation are its founding strategic partners, while Central Square Foundation serves as the managing partner. The Michael & Susan Dell Foundation is also a funding partner.

“Our commitment is to ensure that the next generation of AI-enabled solutions is not only innovative, but equitable – designed to serve every child, everywhere, and to truly transform India’s educational future.” -  B Srinivasan, Executive Lead at Reliance Foundation

ShikshaNext focuses on scaling proven educational technology solutions, supporting the development of EdTech and AI innovations, and encouraging collaboration to improve classroom learning.

Jio Institute Offers Future-Focused Programmes

Jio Institute also contributes to India's higher education landscape through postgraduate programmes in Artificial Intelligence and Data Science, Management, and Sports Management. Its programmes focus on developing professional knowledge and skills relevant to changing industry requirements.

Together, these initiatives demonstrate different ways in which organisations associated with the Reliance Group are participating in India's education sector, from financial assistance for students to technology-enabled learning and postgraduate education.

While Mukesh Ambani's latest position in Asia's wealth ranking reflects Reliance Industries' financial performance, Reliance Foundation's education programmes represent a separate philanthropic effort to widen access to learning and support the development of future talent.