Indonesia Chooses a Collaborative Path to Build the AI Industry

RRI.CO.ID, Jakarta - Vice Minister of Communication and Digital, Nezar Patria, emphasized that Indonesia is choosing a collaborative approach in building the artificial intelligence (AI) industry amid the increasing global geopolitical rivalry.

According to him, while several countries are tightening control over strategic technologies, Indonesia chooses to promote a balance between the role of the government and cross-sector collaboration to build an open, inclusive, and competitive AI ecosystem.

"This is the time for Indonesia to show technological leadership. On behalf of the government, we always welcome collaboration, not only relying on the role of the government but also encouraging all sectors of the industry and stakeholders to work together in one ecosystem to build the AI industry to provide broad access," Nezar stated in Jakarta, Wednesday, May 6, 2026.

He said that the approach has become Indonesia's strategic choice amid global trends pushing for state dominance over technology.

"If we look at the current global trend, including in the United States, there is a view that the state needs to take greater control over technology and technology companies. However, that is not the path Indonesia will choose because it has the potential to lead to what is called technological fascism," he explained.

In the context of global geopolitics, Vice Minister Nezar, highlighted that the semiconductor industry has now become the main arena for the struggle for influence between countries. This shift marks a significant change from the fossil fuel era to the chip-based technology era.

"In the last century, we talked about oil as the main source of power." Now, semiconductors have become the main power in the 21st century. Every country, whether the United States, China, Europe, or middle-power nations, is striving to establish a position in the chip war and semiconductor factory dominance,"Minister Nezar said.

On the other hand, Indonesia still faces fundamental challenges in entering the global supply chain of the AI and semiconductor industries. National involvement in the production process is still considered very limited.

"Indonesia is currently not part of the global AI supply chain. Based on my visit to one of the manufacturers in Batam, namely Nvidia, I observed the semiconductor assembly process, and there were no components in that process that originated from Indonesia," he conveyed.

Nevertheless, Nezar believes that Indonesia has a great opportunity to enter the global ecosystem thru the utilization of strategic resources, particularly critical minerals, and the strengthening of national digital talent.