Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s recent meeting with SpaceX CEO Elon Musk has sparked significant interest, particularly given Mr Musk’s ambitions to expand his businesses in India. During Mr Modi’s visit to the U.S. to meet President Donald Trump, the two men met to discuss various issues, including space, mobility, technology, and innovation.

Mr Modi shared details of their meeting on X. This meeting marks another significant interaction between the two, following their previous encounter in New York in 2023. During that meeting, Mr Musk expressed confidence that Tesla would soon enter the Indian market, stating, “I’m confident that Tesla will be in India… as soon as humanly possible”.

Mr Musk’s meeting with Mr Modi was attended by his three young children, while Mr Modi was accompanied by his top advisers, including External Affairs Minister S. Jaishankar and National Security Adviser Ajit Doval. Trump later commented on the meeting, assuming Mr Musk’s interest in doing business in India, saying, “I would imagine he met, possibly, because you know he’s running a company”.

According to India’s foreign ministry, Mr Modi and Mr Musk discussed strengthening collaboration between Indian and U.S. entities in innovation, space exploration, artificial intelligence, and sustainable development. They also touched on entrepreneurship and good governance.

Musk’s ambitions for Starlink in India

Mr Musk has long been a fan of Mr Modi and has been eager to introduce his Starlink satellite internet service to the Indian market, per AP.

However, Starlink’s entry into India has faced regulatory challenges, security concerns, and opposition from domestic telecom giants like Mukesh Ambani’s Reliance Jio. In November last year, India’s telecoms minister, Jyotiraditya Scindia, stated that Starlink had yet to comply with security norms, and a license for satellite communications services would only be issued after meeting all requirements.

Mr Musk has criticised India’s policy of granting spectrum for satellite services through auctioning, but the Indian government later changed its policy, deciding to assign satellite spectrum instead of auctioning it.

Musk has interests in India’s untapped satellite broadband market

India’s satellite broadband service market is highly competitive, with at least six companies controlling the market, led by Ambani’s Reliance Jio.

About 6,900 active satellites of Mr Musk’s Starlink are orbiting Earth, providing low-latency broadband to some 4.6 million people. However, if Mr Musk wants to enter the Indian market, Starlink’s high pricing could become an issue. India has one of the cheapest rates of mobile data globally and Ambani’s Jio once gave

Despite this, at least 40% of India’s population still lacks access to the internet.

Tesla is waiting to enter India

Tesla has been waiting to enter India as it is the world’s largest automobile market, but because of the high import duties on vehicles, it has faced hurdles. Moreover India’s electric market is still new and made up only about 2% of the total car sales last year. But the government is trying to push that number up to 30% by 2030. Additionally India’s new policy of extending concessional tariffs on fully imported electric vehicles made by foreign carmakers who start local manufacturing is also appealing.

In related news, Tesla is preparing to establish its presence in India, with the company’s visit to India and site selection process underway. Tesla’s entry into the Indian market is expected to bring numerous benefits, including providing Indian consumers with access to advanced electric vehicles, creating job opportunities, and contributing to the growth and development of the Indian electric vehicle industry.
 

Prime Minister Narendra Modi meets Tesla and SpaceX CEO Elon Musk. File
| Photo Credit: PTI

Prime Minister Narendra Modi will meet Elon Musk during his visit to the United States and Starlink’s entry in the South Asian Market could be discussed during the meeting, Reuters reported, citing two people familiar with the plans.

Click here for live updates of PM Narendra Modi’s U.S. visit

Mr. Musk is likely to hold a meeting with PM Modi and the Indian government expects these could include Starlink’s plans to start satellite broadband services in India, according to the report citing two sources, who did not want to be named as the plans are private.

Starlink wants to start operations in India. The Indian government has backed Mr. Musk’s idea that spectrum should be assigned rather than auctioned. However, Starlink’s licence application is still being reviewed.

“Musk is agreeable to give assurances on India security concerns, which includes storing data locally,” one of the sources told Reuters.

Earlier in December, Mr. Musk announced Starlink satellite internet was inactive in India after authorities seized two of the company’s devices, one in an armed conflict zone and another in a drug smuggling bust, according to Reuters report. It was not clear whether Tesla’s entry into India would come up for discussion between PM Modi and Musk, Reuters reported, citing sources. However, increased sourcing of electric vehicle components from India is likely to be discussed during the meeting.

PM Modi is set to meet U.S. President Donald Trump during his two-day visit to the US. PM Modi is travelling to the US after concluding his three-day visit to France. This will be the first visit of Prime Minister Modi to the United States since the inauguration of the second presidential term of President Donald Trump.