Mukesh Ambani, India’s richest man, has expanded his global property portfolio with the acquisition of a premium real estate asset in New York City’s Tribeca neighbourhood. The Reliance Industries chairman paid $17.4 million (around ₹153 crore) for a vacant building at 11 Hubert Street, a site that has attracted interest from some of the world’s wealthiest entrepreneurs. The deal also shines a spotlight on the seller: Robert Pera, a little-known but highly influential billionaire who once worked at Apple before building his own fortune.
Who is Robert Pera?
Robert Pera, 47, is the founder, chairman, and CEO of Ubiquiti, a networking technology company headquartered in New York. Before starting Ubiquiti in 2005, Pera was employed at Apple as a hardware engineer. He worked on Wi-Fi devices for the Cupertino giant, but left to pursue his own vision of affordable, high-performance wireless products. That gamble paid off: Ubiquiti is now a multi-billion-dollar company, and Pera himself is worth more than $10 billion, ranking among America’s richest self-made tech billionaires. Beyond business, Pera also owns the Memphis Grizzlies, an NBA team he acquired in 2012.
The New York property deal
Pera had purchased the Tribeca building in 2018 for about $20 million and envisioned converting it into a 17,000-square-foot luxury mansion. He even hired architect Eric Cobb, who drew up plans for a half-basketball court, a double-height living space, and an expansive primary suite. Later, Pera also secured alternative designs from Maya Lin Studios, which proposed a 20,000-square-foot megamansion complete with seven bedrooms, a swimming pool, and extensive outdoor areas.
However, the plans never materialised, and the property remained vacant for nearly a decade. By 2021, Pera had listed it for $25 million, offering the site along with the approved mansion designs. Ultimately, it was Reliance’s US arm that acquired the building in 2025, paying significantly less than Pera’s asking price.
Mukesh Ambani’s New York link
The acquisition comes two years after Ambani sold a $9 million apartment in Manhattan’s West Village, a relatively modest property compared to his new Tribeca purchase. With the deal, Ambani has secured a potential future family residence or investment in one of New York’s most exclusive districts, where neighbours include celebrities and Wall Street titans.