Universitas Gadjah Mada, Indosat and NVIDIA Open Indonesia’s First University AI Center to Develop Local AI Talent

Indonesia has officially signaled its intent to become a global player in the artificial intelligence landscape. This week, a powerful coalition comprising the Ministry of Communication and Digital Affairs (Komdigi), Indosat Ooredoo Hutchison (IOH), NVIDIA, and Universitas Gadjah Mada (UGM) inaugurated the UGM Indosat NVIDIA AI Technology Center (NVAITC) in Yogyakarta.

As the nation’s first university-based AI hub, the center operates under the umbrella of Indonesia’s AI Center of Excellence initiative. The facility serves as a strategic bridge between government policy, industrial capability, and academic research, aiming to cultivate AI solutions tailored to Indonesia’s unique national requirements.

Building AI Sovereignty

The launch marks a pivotal shift in how Indonesia approaches emerging technology. Rather than acting solely as a consumer of foreign innovation, the country is positioning itself as an active developer and contributor to the global AI ecosystem.

"The Indonesia AI Center of Excellence reflects our long-term vision to position Indonesia as a nation that not only adopts AI but also develops and contributes AI innovations to the world. Through initiatives like this, we are laying the foundations of Indonesia’s AI sovereignty and ensuring AI becomes a driver of economic growth, national competitiveness and solutions to Indonesia’s most pressing challenges."

— Meutya Hafid, Minister of Communication and Digital Affairs

For UGM, the center represents a commitment to modernizing higher education. Prof. dr. Ova Emilia, Ph.D., emphasized that the initiative is designed to foster research downstreaming and equip the next generation of Indonesian talent with the skills necessary to thrive in an AI-driven economy.

Infrastructure and Global Access

The NVAITC is powered by NVIDIA’s full-stack AI platform and GPU Merdeka, Indosat’s sovereign GPU-as-a-service infrastructure. This combination provides students and researchers with high-performance computing resources, including pre-trained models, development frameworks, and advanced technical mentorship.

Vikram Sinha, President Director and CEO of Indosat Ooredoo Hutchison, highlighted the importance of inclusivity in this technological leap:

• Democratizing Access: The center aims to ensure no Indonesian researcher, startup, or student is left behind in the AI era.
• Global Connectivity: By leveraging NVIDIA’s ecosystem, local innovators gain access to a worldwide network of expertise.
• National Vision: The goal is to transform Indonesia from a passive user of technology into a nation that exports AI innovation.

Solving Real-World Challenges

With a population of over 270 million, Indonesia faces complex challenges that require scalable, localized solutions. The NVAITC has identified three primary focus areas for its initial research projects:

1. Healthcare: Combating Tuberculosis

Tuberculosis remains a significant health threat in Indonesia, with over 1 million new cases annually. To address this, a team from UGM’s Faculty of Medicine, led by dr. Dian Kesumapramudya Nurputra, is developing eNose-TB. This AI-powered screening tool analyzes breath samples to detect the disease, aiming to provide a low-cost, rapid, and accessible diagnostic method for remote areas where traditional laboratory equipment is unavailable.

2. Agriculture: Precision Farming

With nearly 30% of the Indonesian workforce employed in agriculture, the SmartAgri project utilizes multimodal AI. By integrating satellite imagery, sensor data, and localized agricultural knowledge, the system provides precision farming recommendations—helping smallholder farmers optimize irrigation and crop management based on specific terrain and climate conditions.

3. Disaster Resilience: Geospatial Intelligence

Situated on the Pacific Ring of Fire, Indonesia is highly susceptible to natural disasters. The Tech4Disaster initiative is building a geospatial AI platform. By processing satellite and sensor data through NVIDIA’s accelerated computing, the platform provides emergency responders with real-time situational awareness and faster, more accurate early-warning systems.

A Future-Ready Ecosystem

The collaboration between these four entities underscores a shared belief that Indonesia’s researchers possess the potential to shape the future of AI. Marc Hamilton, Vice President of Solutions Architecture and Engineering at NVIDIA, noted that the center is specifically designed to equip local talent with NVIDIA Nemotron open models.

By providing the necessary compute power and technical infrastructure, the UGM Indosat NVIDIA AI Technology Center is effectively turning local potential into tangible, high-impact innovation that promises to benefit both the Indonesian public and the global community.