Jakarta – Indonesia has officially launched its AI Center of Excellence (AI COE), a landmark initiative aimed at fostering responsible AI innovation and empowering the country’s digital talent. Spearheaded by the Ministry of Communication and Digital (Komdigi), the center is a collaborative effort with leading technology partners including Indosat Ooredoo Hutchison, Cisco, and Nvidia.
“AI Center of Excellence will play a strategic role in promoting AI across the country,” said Deputy Minister of Komdigi, Nezar Patria, during the inauguration event in Jakarta on July 11, 2025.
The center is designed to be a living implementation of Indonesia’s national AI roadmap, providing not just a framework but real, actionable programs. These include AI labs for industry-academic knowledge transfer, talent upskilling, and sustainable ecosystem development.
At the core of AI COE’s mission are six key pillars:
- AI Sandbox – Focused on real-world applications across priority sectors.
- Training & Certification Programs – Aiming to certify tens of thousands of Indonesian digital talents in AI.
- Startup Accelerator – Supporting the growth of local AI-driven startups.
- Enterprise Hub – Driving industrial collaboration to deliver AI-powered solutions.
- National LLM Platform – Facilitating the development of Indonesia-centric large language models.
- National Think Tank Forum – Shaping ethical and responsible AI policy frameworks.
Nezar emphasized the importance of digital human capital, stating that the COE will play a critical role in scholarship, curriculum reform, public literacy programs, and AI certification—geared toward empowering millions with future-ready skills.
Four strategic pillars guide the center’s long-term development:
1. Sovereign Infrastructure
With support from Indosat’s AI Factory and Nvidia’s supercomputing capabilities, Indonesia aims to build locally relevant AI applications and models tailored to its development goals.
2. Data Security & AI Governance
Cisco will provide robust digital protection frameworks, including Indonesia’s first sovereign Cloud Security Operations Center (SOC), ensuring all data remains within national borders.
3. AI for All
This commitment ensures equitable access to AI benefits across Indonesia—including rural areas—leveraging Indosat’s connectivity, Nvidia’s compute, and the establishment of the first AI Radio Access Network Lab in the country.
4. Talent & Ecosystem Development
The initiative targets the training of nearly 500,000 Indonesians, with Cisco contributing through its Networking Academy and Nvidia via Deep Learning Institute certifications. Support for AI startups will also be provided through the Inception and Connect programs.
With the AI COE, Indonesia sets a bold precedent in Southeast Asia, investing not only in future technologies but in the people who will shape them.
