Reliance Jio has expanded its cloud PC service, JioPC, to all internet users in India, allowing them to use older computers as AI-ready machines without hardware upgrades. The service streams a virtual PC from Jio’s cloud to an existing computer, offering plans with up to eight virtual CPUs, 16GB of RAM, and 1TB of storage. Jio claims the service can provide computing power needed for modern AI applications even to computers as old as eight years. Plans start at ₹1,000 (about $11) for two months, while a 12-month subscription costs ₹4,000 (around $42) for 8GB of RAM and 500GB of storage, or ₹5,000 (about $53) for the 16GB and 1TB configuration.

India had more than 65 million PCs in use in 2025, according to IDC, with expectations of reaching 69 million by the end of 2026. Ambani’s move comes amid widening replacement cycles, with consumers and small businesses in India typically replacing their PCs every five to six years, compared with four to five years in 2022. Enterprises are also extending their machine lifecycles, with replacement cycles reaching about four years, up from three previously. Jio is betting that cloud computing can stretch those lifecycles further by shifting processing and storage to its data centers.

JioPC could create a market where consumers pay for computing capability rather than repeatedly spending on hardware upgrades, according to Prabhu Ram, vice president of the industry research group at CyberMedia Research. However, he does not expect that model to replace conventional PCs. JioPC could create a parallel, price-sensitive tier for households, students, and others for whom buying a new AI-capable PC was never really on the table. Indians have traditionally preferred owning their hardware over paying for PCs as a service, said IDC’s senior market analyst Bharath Shenoy. Jio will have to convince consumers that a recurring subscription is worth giving up some of the advantages of a conventional PC, including the ability to keep working without the internet. That dependence could be particularly prominent in smaller cities and towns where affordable computing has the most room to grow. JioPC requires a stable internet connection, and any disruption can affect the user experience, unlike a conventional computer.

Source: techcrunch