PM Modi speaks to Elon Musk, discusses ‘immense potential for collaboration’ in tech, innovation

Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Friday said that he and US billionaire Elon Musk held talks that covered technology and innovation.

This is their second conversation in recent months. Previously, they held talks in February during Modi’s visit to Washington DC when he met President Donald Trump.

In a post on X, Modi said they “discussed the immense potential for collaboration in the areas of technology and innovation”.

Spoke to @elonmusk and talked about various issues, including the topics we covered during our meeting in Washington DC earlier this year. We discussed the immense potential for collaboration in the areas of technology and innovation. India remains committed to advancing our…

— Narendra Modi (@narendramodi) April 18, 2025

The conversation comes at a time when India is engaged with the Trump administration to reach a trade deal to avoid the worst outcome of the tariff war. With 26 per cent tariffs, Trump has clubbed India among the worst tariffed countries, such as Taiwan (32 per cent), South Korea (26 per cent), and Japan (24 per cent). The White House reportedly expects the deal to be finalised and announced within two to three weeks.

After Musk bankrolled Trump’s campaign and supported him via social media push, he has emerged as the most powerful politician in the United States after Trump. Owing to such influence, he has emerged as a key point of contact between foreign leaders and the Trump administration.

Musk owns the space company SpaceX and electric vehicles company Tesla. For years, Musk has pushed for the entry of Tesla and SpaceX-owned satellite internet provider Starlink into India. Recently, Indian telecom giants Jio and Airtel have entered into deals with Starlink. However, Starlink has not yet got approval from the Indian government to operate in the country.

Earlier this week, Starlink’s senior executives —India Market Access Director Parnil Urdhwareshe, Business Operations Vice President Chad Gibbs, and Senior Director for Global Licensing and Market Activation Ryan Goodnight— visited India and held talks with Union Commerce Minister Piyush Goyal. It is not clear if they also held talks with the telecom department’s official.

Despite deals with Airtel and Jio, there has not been any public development that suggests Starlink’s operations in India re imminent.

No equipment appears to have been brought into India in preparation for the launch of Starlink’s services and it is also not clear if Starlink has built an earth gateway that would allow authorities to intercept and force a shutdown if needed in line with law, according to The Hindu.

In their talks in February, Modi and Musk “discussed strengthening collaboration between Indian and US entities in innovation, space exploration, artificial intelligence, and sustainable development”, according to the Prime Minister’s Office (PMO).

Modi and Musk’s discussion also touched on opportunities to deepen cooperation in emerging technologies, entrepreneurship, and good governance, the PMO further said.