Indosat and GoTo launches Sahabat AI: driving Indonesia’s golden 2045 vision
Sahabat-AI focuses on creating AI tools in Bahasa Indonesia to support education, businesses, and government services.
Indosat Ooredoo Hutchison (IOH) and PT GoTo Gojek Tokopedia Tbk (GoTo Group) have launched Sahabat-AI, an open-source Large Language Model (LLM) ecosystem designed for Bahasa Indonesia and its regional dialects. The initiative was announced during Indonesia AI Day and is part of the Golden 2045 vision, which focuses on advancing technology and infrastructure.
Sahabat-AI is a joint effort involving universities, research institutions, media groups, and government agencies. It addresses the gaps in global AI models by focusing on Indonesia's linguistic and cultural needs. Key partners include AI Singapore, Tech Mahindra, and NVIDIA, whose technologies support the model's training and application.
Government leaders, including Erick Thohir and Jensen Huang of NVIDIA, endorsed the project, while Gibran Rakabuming Raka emphasized the importance of preparing human resources for rapid technological changes, particularly in artificial intelligence.
"The government remains committed to enhancing the readiness of human resources and creating an ecosystem that empowers the younger generation to innovate, modify, and develop technology, including AI-based advancements, across economic, social, cultural, and linguistic domains," said Gibran Rakabuming Raka, vice president of the Republic of Indonesia.
Patrecia Meliana
Sahabat-AI starts with models of 8-billion and 9-billion parameters trained on Bahasa Indonesia datasets. It operates on Indosat Group's GPU Merdeka cloud service with NVIDIA technology, making it capable of handling complex linguistic and cultural tasks.
Vikram Sinha, ceo of Indosat Ooredoo Hutchison, explained that Sahabat-AI is designed to give Indonesians the tools they need to access and use advanced AI technology in their own language. This can help improve communication, education, and services across the country.
“Our vision for Sahabat-AI is to put the power of AI into the hands of everyone in Indonesia. By operating in Bahasa Indonesia, Sahabat-AI addresses critical context and cultural reference gaps left by the global large language models. It will help our businesses to communicate in new ways with customers, it will help our government ministries develop tools to engage with citizens more comprehensively and it will drive meaningful change for millions of people across the country," said Patrick Walujo, chief executive officer of GoTo.
Walujo adds that the open-source nature of the project allows contributions from various sectors, which is important for creating tools that benefit businesses, public services, and individuals.
Jensen Huang, ceo of NVIDIA, praised Indonesia’s collaborative approach, which brings together industry, academia, and government to create AI models suited to local needs.
AI initiatives in Indonesia
This project is one of several AI-focused efforts in Indonesia. In April 2024, Microsoft announced a US$1.7 billion investment over the next four years to develop cloud and AI infrastructure in Indonesia. This investment includes AI training for 840,000 individuals and support for the local tech developer community, aiming to advance Indonesia's digital economy and align with the nation's Golden 2045 vision.
In September, GoTo partnered with Microsoft Indonesia to adopt GitHub Copilot, a tool that helps software engineers with coding tasks. These efforts show Indonesia’s commitment to making AI accessible and useful across different sectors.
In November 2024, Russia's Yandex expressed plans to invest in Indonesia's AI ecosystem. The company aims to expand its search engine platform in the country, indicating a growing interest in Indonesia's AI development from international tech firms.
Additionally, Indonesia's Ministry of Education, Culture, Research, and Technology has been utilizing large language models to preserve the nation's linguistic diversity. With over 700 languages, many lacking proper documentation, the ministry collaborates with universities and local communities to collect data and develop AI tools that assess the vitality of local languages, ensuring their preservation for future generations.
As the country works toward its Golden 2045 goals, Sahabat-AI is expected to help Indonesia strengthen its role in the global AI sector while supporting its cultural and social priorities.
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