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Billionaire Ambani expressed his desire to Mark Zuckerburg to be sitting in Mumbai and be in a stadium in Australia at the same time after Facebook's founder explained the power of virtual and augmented reality.
Facebook is already hosting India's tour of Australia on demand on Facebook Watch. "I am not exactly a sports guy myself, but I understand that that's quite a big deal here," said Zuckerberg at the first edition of Facebook Fuel 2020 for India on Tuesday.
While interacting with Zuckerberg during the virtual event, Ambani said, "You started this with saying that on Facebook, you would see the India - Australia cricket match, I look forward to a day when Facebook will take me with everything that you explained on virtual reality, where I will be sitting in Mumbai and be in a stadium in Australia. And I'm sure that day, with your digital architecture and leadership, is not far away."
Ambani's reaction came after Zuckerberg told him that you could have holograms of digital objects that can be as realistic as the physical objects.
"Maybe you know, in five or ten years, when we're having this conversation, just a hologram version of me will be sitting on the couch next to you, instead of having to do this over a screen. And it'll feel a lot more realistic. So, I just think that's going to be incredibly powerful," said Zuckerberg.
Facebook had already bought a 10% stake in Ambani's digital venture Jio Platforms Limited (JPL), for $5.7 billion or Rs 43,574 crore.
"And the power of virtual and augmented reality is they deliver the sense of a presence. You feel like you're right there with another person, which really will be the ultimate in human connection, and it will give people the opportunity to work and to connect, no matter where they want to be. So that's something that we're very focused on and invested in. And I'm just very excited for the future," said Zuckerberg.
When the internet started, people started with texts to share their experiences, but with improving network connections, people began sharing photos, and with 4G and 5G networks, people now share videos. Ambani's Jio owns India's largest 4G network and planning to start a 5G roll out in the second half of 2021.
"When my daughters took her first steps, I wanted to capture a video of that and share it, not just a photo. But I don't think video is the end of the line. So, a lot of what I am focused on is helping to create virtual reality and augmented reality. So that way, we can share not only a video of an experience, but you can use virtual reality to go into an experience and feel like you're right there," said Zuckerberg.
With Facebook's augmented and virtual reality and Jio's upcoming 5G network, Indians can fulfill the wish to be in the Australian stadium, watching the India-Australia match at the ease of being in their drawing-room. Mukesh Ambani owns the Mumbai Indians, a five-time winner of the Indian Premier League (IPL).