Adobe and Airtel Join Hands to Bring AI-Powered Adobe Express to Millions in India

Adobe has announced a strategic partnership with Airtel, one of India’s largest telecom operators, to significantly expand access to Adobe Express across the country. The move comes at a time when Adobe is facing growing competition from low-cost and free AI-powered image and video editing tools, especially in mobile-first markets like India.

By offering Adobe Express Premium for free to Airtel customers, Adobe aims to strengthen user adoption and make its AI-driven creative tools more accessible to a broader audience.

Adobe–Airtel Partnership: What’s Included

Free Adobe Express Premium for Airtel users

As part of the collaboration, Airtel customers will receive free access to Adobe Express Premium worth Rs 4,000 for 12 months. The offer is available via the Airtel Thanks app, allowing eligible users to unlock the premium subscription at no additional cost.

This initiative is designed to lower entry barriers for users who want to experiment with professional-grade creative tools without committing to paid subscriptions upfront.

Adobe’s Strategy Behind Offering Express for Free

Making AI-powered creativity more accessible

Govind Balakrishnan, SVP and GM at Adobe Express, spoke to Source ahead of the formal announcement and explained Adobe’s broader vision behind the partnership. He noted that by offering Express at no cost, Adobe aims to bring AI-enabled image and video editing to a much wider user base in India.

Balakrishnan shared that Adobe Express has been available for around two years and is already popular among users who need quick edits but may not be comfortable using advanced tools like Photoshop or Premiere Pro. With Airtel’s reach, Adobe now plans to scale that adoption significantly.

How Adobe Express fits into the wider Adobe ecosystem

“We’ve brought key capabilities from Photoshop, Premiere, and After Effects into one easy-to-use app. This doesn’t replace professional tools, it complements them. All these tools coexist within the Adobe ecosystem,” says Balakrishnan.

This approach allows Adobe to cater to both beginners and professionals, offering a simpler entry point while maintaining its flagship creative software for advanced workflows.

Strong Adoption Among Indian Users

Use cases across businesses, students, and creators

Balakrishnan highlighted that Adobe Express already sees strong adoption in India across multiple user segments.

“For small and medium businesses, use cases include product photography, social media campaigns, flyers, posters, and banners. Among students, adoption has been very strong. They’re using Express for presentations, posters, assignments, projects, and hobbies. They’re also learning digital and AI creative skills through the app,” he says.

With the Airtel partnership, Adobe expects these use cases to grow even further, especially among first-time creators and mobile users.

Expanding Reach Through Airtel’s Subscriber Base

A major push for nationwide adoption

With Airtel’s massive subscriber base, Adobe sees this collaboration as a key opportunity to democratise creativity at scale.

“This partnership gives us a massive opportunity to expand access and adoption, and more importantly, to make creativity accessible to every Airtel subscriber in India,” Balakrishnan says.

The partnership aligns with Adobe’s long-term goal of embedding creativity into everyday digital experiences rather than limiting it to professionals alone.

Adobe Express and Firefly AI Integration

What Premium users get

Adobe Express Premium does more than basic editing. It also includes Adobe’s AI generation tools powered by Firefly, making advanced creative capabilities available through a simplified interface.

According to Balakrishnan, the premium subscription offers:

• Paid templates

• AI image generation

• Background removal

• One-tap video editing

• Adobe Stock assets

• Premium fonts

• Cloud storage

For Airtel users, the Adobe Express Premium offering is available immediately and can be accessed through the My Airtel App.

Not Adobe’s First Platform Integration

Balakrishnan also noted that this partnership continues Adobe’s broader strategy of expanding Express through collaborations. In the past, Adobe has integrated Adobe Express with third-party platforms such as ChatGPT, Slack, and Miro, helping users access creative tools directly within their existing workflows.